Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Vinny 11-06-04, 06:47 PM	Well, I began reading through past Dragon mags, and I'm thinking of unleasing the "Incursion" campaign right into Ebberon. Deep within the Xen Drik ruin lies the corpse of Gith, the Githyanki deity.The Lich Queen of the Astral Plane wants to lead a Jihad against Ebberon to take over the worl that once belonged to her people, and wants to use Gith's tomb as a nexus of psionic power. The Last War is over. The Lich Queen sees this, and takes the advantage to attack the recovering world. Due to their weakened state, the Gith easily overpower a few of the factions on Ebberon, but the war continues, and the world burns in flame, waiting for proud heroes to gather the survivors and push back the planar interloppers. So far I was planning on having these: - A swashbuckling air battle between Ebberon Airships and Githyanki Astral Airships/Red Dragons. - The invasion of Khorvaire, which will destroy or conquer many major cities - A futile defense of Sharn during a enourmous Githyanki siege - Guerrila/Urban fighting within the ruins of the newly-conquered Sharn - Forging alliances between unlikelly allies, such as Breland and Karrnath - Actually seeing a newly-formed Warforged Legion fight in battle (and probably fighting alonside their lines) against an overnumbering host of Githyanki Legionnaires. That's all I have so far. What do you guys think? :)
polt 11-07-04, 07:42 AM	Well, having a dead god already breaks alot of what Eberron stands for.
Joni-san 11-07-04, 10:01 AM	Well to begin with Gith was no god. And why burry her in Eberron? Secondly I'm pretty sire that the Gith didn't come from Eberron. And the Alliance between Gith and Red Dragons most likely doesn't exist in Eberron. Try using one of the other dragons species. :twocents:
Draggah 11-08-04, 01:32 AM	Sounds pretty good to me. I don't know that Gith was ever supposed to be an actual diety rather than an ancestral hero who came to be worshipped as a god. However, that has no real bearing on the story as Gith's tomb could be a nexus for power either way. Don't let naysayers bring you down, I see some great potential in this storyline. I especially like the idea of battels in and above Sharn. I would say you could run a whole campaign of this sort in Sharn alone! Joni-san-"...the Alliance between Gith and Red Dragons most likely doesn't exist in Eberron. Try using one of the other dragons species" Why would an alliance with another dragon species make more sense? Just because not all red dragons in Eberron are evil doesn't mean that some of them wouldn't ally with the Githyanki. Maybe it's the decendants of a particular red who was saved by Githyanki or something.
Korhal IV 11-08-04, 01:35 AM	Having a dead god doesn't necessarily break Eberron - the point of distant deities is they're not controlling anything personally, and dead gods are just as good as distant gods in that respect. Plus, as someone already pointed out, Gith wasn't a god(dess?). The githyanki invasion could work in Eberron. Some of the questions I'd have revolve around other big organizations in Eberron - specifically, the Quori. What are our favorite soul-stealing demonic invaders going to do when someone beats them to the punch? Could we see Sarlonan navies sailing to the rescue of Sharn? A cunning mind might also note that Khorvairians liberated by Sarlonan forces would also be much more receptive to Sarlonan culture, beliefs, and religion - opening the way for more active Quori recruitment and dispersal. The PCs might find themselves forced to make a deal with the devil they know to fight the one they don't. The Gatekeepers would also play a major role - as soon as they hear about otherworldly invasion, they're going to be all over that. A sharp revival of their culture and numbers is to be expected - after all, when you've been preaching about horrifying alien invaders for millennia and it finally comes true, people tend to pay you a whole lot more respect. And when the Gatekeepers come into contact with the Sarlonans - well, there's gonna be some fun times in Khorvaire. Red-dragon riding is a distinct oddity in Eberron - it's probably best to just cut the dragons entirely, and replace them with Astral Airships. If the dragons play any role in this, it's through the Chamber. Remember, they taught the giants the magic that allowed them to defeat the Quori, so odds are they've leaked the secret to victory this time too. Might the PCs have to uncover new draconic spells, or swear fealty to the Chamber in exchange for the power to shut down the githyanki gates?
stone_dog 11-08-04, 02:17 AM	I like the idea that the githyanki have a pact with one particular family of dragons. An ancient and decadent line of Reds that secretly works to rule over the world using (or denying) the Prophecy. Over the eons this group brought other dragons into their fold, evil and thirsting for power and waiting for a time when psychic raiders from beyond will wash over the world, softening up their enemies and eliminating key rivals without all that much effort on the part of the dragons. Then, the Dark Prophets rise up over the ruins of the world and excert their power to rule almost unchecked after a great and bloody draconic revolution. Probably making use of the Dragon Overlords from Dragonlance. They already used part of their might to destabalize Khorvaire using a device of great and terrible power to destroy Cyre. Now that that test run has been shown to be successful they have the perfect weapon to level the field against Sarlona and their psionic god kings. Or perhaps the Mourning was in fact caused by the final transformation of the first Dragon Overlord and even now the great and terrible Wyrm lays dormant within the Glowing Chasm while the energies of the Mournland finishes the process. The Chamber? Hah! Deluded fools who can't see the path to true power and draconic dominance laid out right before their eyes! Oh, the Githyanki? No great bother. While the Pact keeps us from acting against the Lich Queen directly, the greatest threat to our plans has risen in the form of a handful of the lesser races. Odd that such lowly creatures should grow to such might, but after we hint to our "allies" within the Chamber that these... heroes might be able to thwart the incursion the Lich Queen will die, the pact will be broken and that band of pesky ground crawlers will be weak enough for a few hatchlings to polish off. Or the adventurers will die and the Lich Queen will be weak enough for our magics to shatter the Pact finally and take over. Whichever. Of course, what the great wyrms are too arrogant to understand is that heroes are more tenacious than they can possibly imagine. After the incursion is delt with the heroes will be in place to slip into epic play dealing with hunting down the Dark Prophets with the aid of the Chamber and possibly delving into the heart of Argonnessen itself.
Korhal IV 11-08-04, 02:23 AM	I dunno, the idea of dragons as baddies seems too normal to fit in Eberron. :P
nick012000 11-08-04, 02:31 AM	Doesn't Vlaakith have an artifact that allows her to control red dragons, given to her by Tiamat (or possibly one of her consorts, not sure). Would be an interesting sight when the Gith start trying to throw their weight around with the Reds in the Chamber.
Brastan 11-08-04, 02:44 AM	I was thinking about that. It works normally because Red Dragons are evil. In Eberron this maybe the majority( or not since Dragons have taken back the mythical role). My solution is a group of banished Red Dragons that were sent in to astral exile. This would help explain why the Githyaki are tolerated as riders (something most dragons hate, I think). A banished group of dragons could also include dragons of other colors. If you don't like the banished option how bring the prophecy into play. Perhaps the dragons aiding the Gith believe that this is part of the greater prophecy (mistakenly or factually). I guess my main point is to include dragons of other colors to accommodated for the lack of complete Red Dragon support. The airship battles will be spectacular.
stone_dog 11-08-04, 03:02 AM	I dunno, the idea of dragons as baddies seems too normal to fit in Eberron. :P Classic. The word is classic, not normal. :P If you don't want to go that route however there are other options that might just be wierd enough to run with. Vlaakith does indeed have an artifact that lets her control red dragons gifted by the red consort of Tiamat. Now, Tiamat doesn't exist as we know her, but lets run with the artifact thing. Githyanki are probably the left over survivors of a race devestated by Xoriat on a distant world. Maybe even another planet in the Eberron system that doesn't have a prophecy to warn them about such things as planar incursions. The source isn't important, but the main idea is that maybe the artifact that Vlaakith has access to produces a symbiot that makes its "wearer" susceptable to a certain kind of mind control. The Githyanki have been using thier planeshifting abilities for thousands of years to kidnap and brainwash dragons of all colors and twist them into new and terrible forms using the arts of the daelkyr that they stole during the ancient uprising led by Gith herself. Tack on "hivemind" as an ability possesed by these githyanki dragonthralls or something as an extra ability possesed by the strange fleshy nodes pulsing from the base of their skulls. If you destroy those nodes do you get a suddenly free ally gratefull for the emancipation from mental slavery? No! You get an angry wrym cut off from the Song (or whatever they call the constant whisper of dragon voices) seeking vengance! That way you can have your dragon-riding githyanki AND the Eberron prophecy dragons all on the same plate! Now that I think on it, I really like the idea of the githyanki taking on the arts of their destroyers and being corrupted by that power. Maybe that would be the source to slip certain items from Chaositech into Eberron! Continued disruption of society through the introduction of mutation causing symbiots from beyond this world. Let that thing that Vlaakith has control all mutants spawned by the arts of the daelkyr. Does it control aberrations too? Probably not. Aberrations have become actual species and seperate creatures, but mutants are all twisted and susceptable to things that their more "stable" cousins aren't. That could be the main difference between the Githyanki and the Githzerai. The githyanki adopted the evil methods of their former masters while the githzerai kept themselves pure. Hey, the Githyanki could have CAUSED the mournlands with this thing! Think about that... a central location to pour an army of mutated creatures into a good majority of the Nations of Khorvaire. Replace dragons with mutants and you have a recipie for madness and destruction!
Vinny 11-08-04, 08:49 PM	Hey thanks guys! Yeah, I think I'll run this game. :) This is my idea: Gith was buried deep in the Xen Dric ruins. When Vlaakith arrives, she uses her "mind-controlling" staff to turn a large majority of dragons into "thralls". This can lead to another sub-quest, say a huge battle over Argonsenn with dragonthralls and Ebberon dragons to destroy the "thralls" and free the dragons from their enslavement. Also, Sharn would most likely be destroyed. I guess a huge Astral Ship bombardment should be fun, with the group trying to avoid massive sige bolts and elemental cannons (huge fireballs and such). Also, running a siege before the destruction should be fun! I guess a swashbuckling fight in the air between Astral ships should be cool! :) As Sharn burns, Vlaakith settles into Xen Drik to begin the assimilation of Gith's power. Eventually, the resistance will eventually topple Githyanki occupation on Khorvaire, and then comes the Khorvarian invasion of Xen Drik. This should be fun, maybe with a Normandy-style beach landing towards a Githyanki controlled fort. Plenty of fireballs, bolt throwers, and magical spells to replicate artilerry. Then, the fight is taken towards the main ruins, and a "final" battle with Vlaakith. I'll try to add more and more if I do start the game. Lots of stuff needs fleshing out. :)
ImmortalBlueMage 11-08-04, 10:13 PM	On the subject of dead deities in Eberron: The Githyanki worshipping a dead Gith is pretty much the same as the Order of the Emerald Claw worshipping a live Vol.
Ch@pel 11-08-04, 10:17 PM	The amount of effort neccessary to slipping this Incursion into Eberron is staggering! Of course, I've been thinking of how to do it as well. I think every DM will have vastly different outcome. As someone else already said, the Quori ought to be taken into account here. Also, in the ECS, the giths have a special section describing their place in the setting; though I, for one, am not exactly a stickler for this default use of them, I'm in the process of creating my own version of the gith history (with illithids, daelkyr and quori all being involved :D) On a completely unrelated note, while I LOVE the giths... Yankies suck! :cool:
Nerag 11-09-04, 02:32 AM	Githyanki are naturals for Eberron. An ancient branch of the human race enslaved in Kyber rises up against the Mind Flayers and escapes to the Astral plane where they are contacted by an ancient red dragon which enlists them in the fight against Xoriat... it is perfect. In fact it makes more sense in Eberron than in standard D+D. In standard D+D I could never figure out why red dragons and githyanki were working together... Eberron gives us a reason. As for the invasion: the Githyanki and their Draconic patrons have decided that the kingdoms are too disorganized and weak to properly address the threat of Xoriat. So they take steps... The only problem is that if I were a player in a game I might be tempted to have my character throw in with the Githyanki. "They're right guys. How can we expect to face the horrors of Xoriat without unity. Let me be the first to welcome our new Githyanki Overlords..." The beauty of it all is that as befits the Eberron setting the Githyanki aren't even the 'bad guys' as such. They are just doing what is right, just in a heavy handed way.
xnrdcorex 11-09-04, 10:15 AM	hey man, sounds like a great idea to me! the great thing about ebberon, which kieth has said many times, is that its ours and we can do whatever we want with it. dont listen to some of these nay sayers. you cna do whatever you wish with the source book and i think your ideas a good one.
Kaz the DM 11-09-04, 11:26 AM	On the subject of dead deities in Eberron: The Githyanki worshipping a dead Gith is pretty much the same as the Order of the Emerald Claw worshipping a live Vol. I spent 15 months and 18 days in Helldad
dentris 11-09-04, 05:53 PM	You could even add a little twist. As the fight seems hopeless for the Korvairians, a fair number of githyanki appear and help them fight back. They are in fact Githzerai who wishes to prevent the lich-queen from controlling the body of Gith. They are seen as enemy as first, but they are soon found unvaluable in the defense against the invaders from the astral plane
ORC_Paradox 11-09-04, 10:07 PM	Don't forget the dragon prophesy. The invasion could be It.
Ramses III 12-22-04, 01:28 AM	I love the githyanki-illithid tie-in to this; I would go even further. Here's my take: The Gith were a minority race on Khorvaire during the height of the Dhakaani Empire. When the Daelkyr came, they enslaved the entire race and put them at the disposal of the illithids. Hence the Gith want vengeance against both.... The dragon alliance makes sense for reasons already stated, i.e. the same dragons that helped the Gatekeepers helped to liberate the Gith and release them to the Astral Plane. Now here's my crazy idea: The Githyanki want access to Xoriat. I'm thinking they still have kin who were twisted by the Daelkyr in Khyber, and some were taken to Xoriat and imprisoned/enslaved there. They (for some reason) can't get to Xoriat from the Astral Plane, and they need to bust open the Gatekeeper seals in the Shadow Marches to get access. At first they don't know where the seals are, so they make a few recon and spying missions to get the information. Meanwhile, the Chamber becomes aware of what's going on and reveals this information to any other side you want prominent in the conflict -- my group of choice here would be Riedra; the Dreaming Dark won't want the Daelkyr running free to mess with their plots should the githyanki actually open the seals. The Gatekeepers would be another good group to tip off for reasons already mentioned. Anyway, the war could result from the Githyanki trying to take over one of the Five Nations as a platform from which to invade Khyber at first, then all heck breaks loose as they start trying to bust open those seals and get into Xoriat. As someone else already said, the Quori ought to be taken into account here. Also, in the ECS, the giths have a special section describing their place in the setting; though I, for one, am not exactly a stickler for this default use of them, I'm in the process of creating my own version of the gith history (with illithids, daelkyr and quori all being involved ) I haven't found any information on the Gith in the ECS. Where is this information?
Dogbiter 12-22-04, 02:02 AM	I have been rereading the Invasion series of articles in hopes of inflicting it on my players and Eberron as well. I am concidering an idea that the Githyanki (and other creatures from the astral plane) are anciant. They existed in what once was a beutiful paradise of earth, sky and ocean. The world from which they hail was in a distant part of the astral plane. When the Dragons created Eberron they took the "world" of the Githyanki and reshaped to make Eberron and its environs on the material world. Now for untold centries the Githyanki (and friends) have searched the planes for there lost "world" Gith. It wasnt until a adventersome and wise red dragon found the Githyanki in the astral plane that they were lead to Eberron. It has taken the Githyanki thousands of years to reach ebberron and in that time they have created an army that can conquer a world. They have silver swords and astral ships and legions of "feral" red dragons (most not very old at all) to help them destroy there anciant (and mostly unknown) enemies. So they come to Eberron in hope of reclaiming the land (sky and sea and etc) that is very much their "God".
StinkyNutz 12-22-04, 12:16 PM	I'm in the process of doing the incursion right now and so far so good. Heres the way Im going about most of the bigger plot lines. The githtanki are an ancient race from a distant world which was taken and destroyed by the daerkyl. Their entire race was enslaved, and used as food, research, and playthings for their masters for centuries. Until Gith led a few of them agaisnt their masters, and fled to the astral plane. Where they live on islands and search for a new home, and their dead "god". Gith is indeed buried in Xendrix. She was placed there by the giants of old who tapped into her untold power to help defeat the quori long ago, but at the high cost of destroying their civilization (great power has great price). Her coffin was sealed by three schemas (hahahaha) who hold the key to properly tap into the power and unleash it and control it (cough cough). The mourning was certain wizards, artificers and nobles attempt at tapping into the power of Gith (whose coffin they found). But without the schemas and knowing exactly what they were doing, they unleashed the power upon themselves, tearing the very fabric of Eberron and destroying all they hoped to save. But it had another effect, for the power that was released was taen note of, by the Queen. And now her people have been watching Eberron closely. Learning all they can while they fought amongst themselves. For two years she has plotted and planned, gathering all the information she could. And now is the time for the invasion to begin. The Githyanki have a pact with one family of red dragons (about 20 of them in all, with two very large very ancient ones, the male and the female). It is so low of a number because breeding in the astral plane cannot be done, so other planes have to be used. Which is also why there is only a finite number of Gith (though they are all warriors). My pc's have been struggling to get the first piece of te schema (took 5 game nights to get through the FF, and get back the schema). They have fought a few groups of strange elf like creatures who appear out of nowhere and disspear the same. But their main enimies are the emerald claw and the blood of Vol (who are allied with the Gith in hopes of gaining power and Vol hoped to come back to life). Thats where its at so far, but I have it all planned out. Vol will try to overthrow the vampire king of Karrnath and take control of its armies to help the Gith. The Gith will focus their forces on Breland (sharn and Wroat in paticular) while Vol is supposed to march her undead armies on Aundair before they both attack Thrane. With those major powers out of the way, the rest will fall fairly easily (or so thats the way the plan goes). Thats all I have time for now....more later perhaps if anyone wants to hear it...
kisama 12-23-04, 09:09 AM	I for one am appauled and saddened by the bad image Red Dragons have had to live with for this long. :)