GM wants to run Nautical-based FR Campaign [Archive] - Wizards Community

GM wants to run Nautical-based FR Campaign [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
wesleytj
07-27-06, 02:01 PM I was hoping some of you guys could give me a hand with some ideas or tips on where to start with this...I'm sorry I haven't posted here in ages, so I'm certainly not a "regular" but I hope you can help nonetheless...

I own most of the 3rd ed and 3.5 FR stuff, and have even read substantial portions of it. I have run a successfull FR campaign in the past featuring the Shadow Weave and the Church of Shar etc etc so I know the basics pretty well.

My problem is that my new big idea is to run a nautical-based FR campaign as the next big thing. I've bought and read the Stormwrack book, and it's got some really good material in it, but in general, most FR stuff, and indeed most D&D stuff in general, is land based.

This is of course one of the main reasons I wanted to do this, as it means the campaign is guaranteed to make even my more veteran players rethink their playstyles and pre-conceptions and so on. but it's also a major handicap, because it means I have precious little source material or plot hooks to work with, and because it means I also have to rethink some things.

What I'd like from the group here, if possible, would be some ideas on where in the Realms would be a good place to base such a campaign. The Moonsea? The Sword Coast? The Pirate Isles?

Based on that answer likely, which books would be the best to help me along for good specific background info?

Another question is should I allow some of the Stormwrack races and such into the Realms? For those familiar with the Stormwrack book, would there be any significant reason NOT to allow some of them?

Finally, since it is pretty rare to run a campaign like this, I'd like to try not to restrict my characters on the types of sea-based characters they want to make. The problem with that is that if some people make characters that are more ship-sailor based, and others make some truly aquatic characters, this would make it difficult to keep the party together. But as I said, I don't really want to force my players to all make aquatic, or to all make ship-based, characters. When I mentioned this possibility to some of my players, a few said "cool, I always wanted to try to make an aquatic elf PC"... while one or two others immediately said "sweet, I always wanted an excuse to try out the dread pirate prestige class". See my dilemma?

Any help on any/all of these issues would be grand. Thanks in advance. :)
Thumperhead
07-27-06, 10:27 PM Where you base your campaign will most likely depend on what sort of characters your players want to make. Hard-bitten pirates? Probably the Pirate Isles. "Law-abiding" Privateers with a Letter of Marque? Cormyrean Freesails would be your best bet. Waterborne merchants? Just about anywhere near a sizeable body of water.

Off the top of my head, the best sourcebooks you could find are the following 2ed products: Pirates of the Fallen Stars, Sea of Fallen Stars, Of Ships and the Sea, and Corsairs of the Great Sea. The first three are available to purchase at www.paizo.com as pdf's for $4.00 apiece, and CotGS is available as a free download here in the Wizards downloads section: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/downloads . PotFS and SoFS are Realms-specific, with more background on the Sea of Fallen Stars than you can shake a stick at. OSatS is a generic D&D sourcebook, but has loads of info on life at sea. Corsairs is specific to Zakhara/Al-Qadim, but if one of your players wants a uniquely foreign flavour to his character, this is a great resource.

Hope this helps.
Digitalelf
07-27-06, 10:32 PM My players and I have always had fun on the Inner Sea/Sea of Fallen Stars. It's a large enough body of water to adventure within, but not so large as to make you the DM, overwhelmed.

A good source book would be the old 2nd Ed. Sea of Fallen Stars (FOR 3 IIRC), but lacking that, try the d20 7th Sea for ideas. The setting is most definitely NOT FR, but a good DM would be able to cannibalize it non-the-less... :)

Sorry I can’t be of any help with the whole prestige class thing, but I would let the player run an aquatic elf it were me... :D

Hope my two coppers here helps...

As they say on the Sea of Fallen Stars, My your sword be ever wet, and your bottom dry ;)
wesleytj
07-28-06, 06:04 PM thx for the tips so far gents...i guess my mistake was looking just at 3 and 3.5 for material. those links to module downloads are great! my wife has played a 7th sea demo at gencon once, and she did seem to enjoy it. i didn't realize it was a d20 based system as well, so that might be worth looking into as well...less conversion work and such.

anyone have any further input, particularly on the question of how to keep a coherent game going with characters both on a ship and under the ocean?
Caligula
07-29-06, 04:45 PM Have you seen the 2 "Pirates in the Caribbean" movies? I think they would be great inspirations for you!

They are very good too!

And check out the Swashbuckler prestige class in Complete Warrior!
Manshoon
07-29-06, 07:59 PM Hi!

I'm running a sea-based campaign and have to say that the above mentioned sources are worth the money. Especially SoFS an PotFS. They're 2ed but that is fine with me.

If your players choose sea-based and land-based characters you have to find an enemy that threatens all of their homes and family. You could try rampaging dragons that are the cause that the local sahuagin(sp?) population flees to loot other places( e.g.the PCs' home?). Later the PCs learn what drove the monsters to their home and have to fight a family of dragons to bring peace back to their part of the realms.

If you have pirate characters only, you could let them set sail to find fame and fortune or send them on a voyage to accomplish something and then let them chose to become pirates or privateers

In my game both players (I know it's a small group but it has some advantages :D ) are at least part human. One is a Mage and the adopted son of a sembian merchant family, the other his half-elven half-brother who was raised on Westgate's streets. They are going on a business venture by ship that's crucial to the merchant family's survival. They'll meet the Pirates of the inner Sea, the Nightmasks of Westgate, maybe some yuan-ti in the Vilhon Reach and will end up in a civil war in Nimpeth while secretly the Cult of the dragon tries to gain dominance in sembian shipping and destroys the mage's family.

You see, the inner sea has a lot of possibilities.

Hope some of this helps,

bye
GothicDan
07-29-06, 08:05 PM Environmentla factors may be fun, too.

Perhaps a group of evil aquatic Druids who are summoning maelstroms and tsunamis to destroy trade vessels and coastal towns, in the name of Umberlee/Sekolah/etc.?
Manshoon
07-29-06, 08:24 PM Have you read the Threat from the Sea trilogy ( by Mel Odom I think) + Realms of the Deep yet? Might help you with getting the feeling for the sea and its murky depths.

If you like the Inner Sea you should also read Queen of the Depths and perhaps the Scions of Arrabar trilogy. The second book mentions some sea battle and a radical group of druids although tey are not aquatic.
Manshoon
07-29-06, 08:32 PM You could let them explore the ruins of old Netheril. There're a few at the bottom of the Inner Sea. SoFS might help with some ideas. But beware.
Dark secrets might lurk below the waves :D .
roll8dn
07-29-06, 08:55 PM In terms of having both air- and water-breathers as PCs in your campaign, there shouldn't be a problem. Depending upon what classes your aquatic PCs decide to adventure as, it would not be too far out in left field for the aquatic PC to be a guide for the ship.

Perhaps the captain has a standing trade agreement with the local aquatic elf rangers? He supplies them with forged metal goods, magical items, and the like that can not be easily made underwater. In return, they provide escorts, guides, and contacts for him amongst the local water-breathers. It would be almost the same as any trader mapping out new land in the history of the world; first, he talks to the natives.

Just a thought.
wesleytj
07-30-06, 03:29 PM Wow plenty of great ideas in there guys. I have bought those $4 downloads and have started reading them, when I've finished that, I will probably look into those novels as well. If that hasn't given me enough ideas by then, then the problem is me. ;)

The idea of evil aquatic druids or clerics of unberlee bringing natural disasters to coastal areas is a great idea as well. I had thought of underwater ruins, somewhat Atlantis-esque sorts of adventures, and those Netherese ruins might do just the trick. Having local aquatics that act as intermediaries in exchange for land-based materials is also a good idea, maybe that's how we'd get an aquatic pc started into the game, since often they don't interact with the surfacers too much.

I'm grateful to all who have contributed, I knew I'd find exactly the sort of help I was looking for here. I'll keep watching the thread if anyone has something further to add as well.

Cheers!
3catcircus
07-31-06, 10:01 PM In addition to the above suggestions, I'd also recommend a PDF from Adamant Entertainment that you can get on RPGNOW: Corsair!

The thing is a darn good overall nautical book that details (in great detail) everything you'll ever want to know about sailing a medieval ship - weather, maneuvers, gathering a crew, combat repairs, etc. Most importantly, it is d20 - so no need to convert anything.

Another Cormyr-specific suggestion is to go on Candlekeep and find Jerry Davis' Cormyrean Military article detailing the Blue Dragons (Cormyrean Navy).
BadCatMan
08-01-06, 12:44 AM If you'd like a more Classical style, there's Chessenta, with triremes and the like. Sahaugin and Aquatic Elves live off the coast, and Water Genasi are around.

If you're looking for Viking style, I think Ruathym would fit the bill.

A completely monstrous game, I think that would be Nelanther.

If you want exploration, you could sail to Maztica, or one of the unknown lands (like Anchorome).
ericlboyd
08-01-06, 10:57 AM You could also play the Savage Tide campaign from Paizo. There's a summary in this month's issue of Dungeon (#138) and the 12-part adventure path begins next month (issue #139).

I'll be doing conversion notes for the Realms on the paizo site for each issue. However, this adventure path will be very easy to adapt to the Realms.

--Eric

PS Full disclosure: I'm writing part #10.
wesleytj
08-01-06, 11:37 AM You could also play the Savage Tide campaign from Paizo. There's a summary in this month's issue of Dungeon (#138) and the 12-part adventure path begins next month (issue #139).

I'll be doing conversion notes for the Realms on the paizo site for each issue. However, this adventure path will be very easy to adapt to the Realms.

--Eric

PS Full disclosure: I'm writing part #10.

That sounds really great. So if it's starting next month, and it's a 12 part series, my shrewd math skills tell me that it will likely be complete around september of '07, right? My concern there is that if we start around the first of the year, and play 3-4 hours a week, will we get to a point where we are overstepping the story line? Also, I'm somewhat leery about running a campaign where I don't know at least several steps ahead, it may cause me to later contradict myself...

I will follow that storyline for the next few months, up until our campaign gets running, perhaps it can work. Without going into excessive detail, could you give me a basic overview of the storyline? I understand any constraints and limitations that may be imposed on you in that regard, given that they're being published. I'm just looking for a really basic idea.

In the meantime, I have plenty of great stuff to read that's been provided by some of the other posters here. You all have far exceeded my hopes and expectations of what I would get back on this post. Thank you!

:cool:
dragonfriend
08-01-06, 11:38 AM Great suggestions, above all Eric last one.

I can say you to use, Shining South, Stormwrak and Corsairs of the Great Sea and run a pirate campaign in the great sea, between southern Faerun and Northern Zakhara:

Tropical climate, the warring cities-state of northern Zakhara, the desert, strange cultures like a nation of half-drow, a nation of halfling, the jungles, the yuan-ti (see Serpent Kingdoms), great merchant nations like Durpar, Var and Eastagund, a nation of mages with flying ships (halruaa). Well, I thing this is the best area for a Pirate Campaign...
Maybe you can throw in one or two gates to Skullport, under Waterdeep (see the good City of Splendors book).

Hope you like it :)
ericlboyd
08-01-06, 02:06 PM That sounds really great. So if it's starting next month, and it's a 12 part series, my shrewd math skills tell me that it will likely be complete around september of '07, right? My concern there is that if we start around the first of the year, and play 3-4 hours a week, will we get to a point where we are overstepping the story line? Also, I'm somewhat leery about running a campaign where I don't know at least several steps ahead, it may cause me to later contradict myself...

I will follow that storyline for the next few months, up until our campaign gets running, perhaps it can work. Without going into excessive detail, could you give me a basic overview of the storyline? I understand any constraints and limitations that may be imposed on you in that regard, given that they're being published. I'm just looking for a really basic idea.

The complete storyline is in Dungeon #138. (About 7 pages worth.)

Roughly ... SPOILERS!!!!

The PCs get tangled up with pirates, the Isle of Dread, and Demogorgon in the Abyss. Think Pirates of the Caribbean meets Skull Isle of King Kong for the first 2/3rds of the adventure path.

--Eric
Necrontyr
08-03-06, 03:04 AM If you're feeling really ambitious, why not try to circumnavigate Toril? Set sail with cheering crowds from Waterdeep, Baldur's Gate or even Athkatla, then there's Evermeet and Maztica and sahuaghin, down around Toril's equivalant of Cape Horn and onto the far side of the world, a great ocean between Maztica's unknown west coast and Kara-Tur . . . anything there is possible. Draw inspiration from everything from Pacific mythology, to the Voyage of the Dawntreader to Gulliver's Travels . . . Easter Island with cannabalistic halflings worshipping living demonic statues, lost elven explorers sailing for centuries, floating (or flying or walking) cities, cities on a dragon turtle's back, rescue natives from an angry volcano-god, walk across a sea of weeds, be explorers, conquerers or pirates . . . hell, even Godzilla could make an appearence!

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
wesleytj 07-27-06, 02:01 PM	I was hoping some of you guys could give me a hand with some ideas or tips on where to start with this...I'm sorry I haven't posted here in ages, so I'm certainly not a "regular" but I hope you can help nonetheless... I own most of the 3rd ed and 3.5 FR stuff, and have even read substantial portions of it. I have run a successfull FR campaign in the past featuring the Shadow Weave and the Church of Shar etc etc so I know the basics pretty well. My problem is that my new big idea is to run a nautical-based FR campaign as the next big thing. I've bought and read the Stormwrack book, and it's got some really good material in it, but in general, most FR stuff, and indeed most D&D stuff in general, is land based. This is of course one of the main reasons I wanted to do this, as it means the campaign is guaranteed to make even my more veteran players rethink their playstyles and pre-conceptions and so on. but it's also a major handicap, because it means I have precious little source material or plot hooks to work with, and because it means I also have to rethink some things. What I'd like from the group here, if possible, would be some ideas on where in the Realms would be a good place to base such a campaign. The Moonsea? The Sword Coast? The Pirate Isles? Based on that answer likely, which books would be the best to help me along for good specific background info? Another question is should I allow some of the Stormwrack races and such into the Realms? For those familiar with the Stormwrack book, would there be any significant reason NOT to allow some of them? Finally, since it is pretty rare to run a campaign like this, I'd like to try not to restrict my characters on the types of sea-based characters they want to make. The problem with that is that if some people make characters that are more ship-sailor based, and others make some truly aquatic characters, this would make it difficult to keep the party together. But as I said, I don't really want to force my players to all make aquatic, or to all make ship-based, characters. When I mentioned this possibility to some of my players, a few said "cool, I always wanted to try to make an aquatic elf PC"... while one or two others immediately said "sweet, I always wanted an excuse to try out the dread pirate prestige class". See my dilemma? Any help on any/all of these issues would be grand. Thanks in advance. :)
Thumperhead 07-27-06, 10:27 PM	Where you base your campaign will most likely depend on what sort of characters your players want to make. Hard-bitten pirates? Probably the Pirate Isles. "Law-abiding" Privateers with a Letter of Marque? Cormyrean Freesails would be your best bet. Waterborne merchants? Just about anywhere near a sizeable body of water. Off the top of my head, the best sourcebooks you could find are the following 2ed products: Pirates of the Fallen Stars, Sea of Fallen Stars, Of Ships and the Sea, and Corsairs of the Great Sea. The first three are available to purchase at www.paizo.com as pdf's for $4.00 apiece, and CotGS is available as a free download here in the Wizards downloads section: http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/dnd/downloads . PotFS and SoFS are Realms-specific, with more background on the Sea of Fallen Stars than you can shake a stick at. OSatS is a generic D&D sourcebook, but has loads of info on life at sea. Corsairs is specific to Zakhara/Al-Qadim, but if one of your players wants a uniquely foreign flavour to his character, this is a great resource. Hope this helps.
Digitalelf 07-27-06, 10:32 PM	My players and I have always had fun on the Inner Sea/Sea of Fallen Stars. It's a large enough body of water to adventure within, but not so large as to make you the DM, overwhelmed. A good source book would be the old 2nd Ed. Sea of Fallen Stars (FOR 3 IIRC), but lacking that, try the d20 7th Sea for ideas. The setting is most definitely NOT FR, but a good DM would be able to cannibalize it non-the-less... :) Sorry I can’t be of any help with the whole prestige class thing, but I would let the player run an aquatic elf it were me... :D Hope my two coppers here helps... As they say on the Sea of Fallen Stars, My your sword be ever wet, and your bottom dry ;)
wesleytj 07-28-06, 06:04 PM	thx for the tips so far gents...i guess my mistake was looking just at 3 and 3.5 for material. those links to module downloads are great! my wife has played a 7th sea demo at gencon once, and she did seem to enjoy it. i didn't realize it was a d20 based system as well, so that might be worth looking into as well...less conversion work and such. anyone have any further input, particularly on the question of how to keep a coherent game going with characters both on a ship and under the ocean?
Caligula 07-29-06, 04:45 PM	Have you seen the 2 "Pirates in the Caribbean" movies? I think they would be great inspirations for you! They are very good too! And check out the Swashbuckler prestige class in Complete Warrior!
Manshoon 07-29-06, 07:59 PM	Hi! I'm running a sea-based campaign and have to say that the above mentioned sources are worth the money. Especially SoFS an PotFS. They're 2ed but that is fine with me. If your players choose sea-based and land-based characters you have to find an enemy that threatens all of their homes and family. You could try rampaging dragons that are the cause that the local sahuagin(sp?) population flees to loot other places( e.g.the PCs' home?). Later the PCs learn what drove the monsters to their home and have to fight a family of dragons to bring peace back to their part of the realms. If you have pirate characters only, you could let them set sail to find fame and fortune or send them on a voyage to accomplish something and then let them chose to become pirates or privateers In my game both players (I know it's a small group but it has some advantages :D ) are at least part human. One is a Mage and the adopted son of a sembian merchant family, the other his half-elven half-brother who was raised on Westgate's streets. They are going on a business venture by ship that's crucial to the merchant family's survival. They'll meet the Pirates of the inner Sea, the Nightmasks of Westgate, maybe some yuan-ti in the Vilhon Reach and will end up in a civil war in Nimpeth while secretly the Cult of the dragon tries to gain dominance in sembian shipping and destroys the mage's family. You see, the inner sea has a lot of possibilities. Hope some of this helps, bye
GothicDan 07-29-06, 08:05 PM	Environmentla factors may be fun, too. Perhaps a group of evil aquatic Druids who are summoning maelstroms and tsunamis to destroy trade vessels and coastal towns, in the name of Umberlee/Sekolah/etc.?
Manshoon 07-29-06, 08:24 PM	Have you read the Threat from the Sea trilogy ( by Mel Odom I think) + Realms of the Deep yet? Might help you with getting the feeling for the sea and its murky depths. If you like the Inner Sea you should also read Queen of the Depths and perhaps the Scions of Arrabar trilogy. The second book mentions some sea battle and a radical group of druids although tey are not aquatic.
Manshoon 07-29-06, 08:32 PM	You could let them explore the ruins of old Netheril. There're a few at the bottom of the Inner Sea. SoFS might help with some ideas. But beware. Dark secrets might lurk below the waves :D .
roll8dn 07-29-06, 08:55 PM	In terms of having both air- and water-breathers as PCs in your campaign, there shouldn't be a problem. Depending upon what classes your aquatic PCs decide to adventure as, it would not be too far out in left field for the aquatic PC to be a guide for the ship. Perhaps the captain has a standing trade agreement with the local aquatic elf rangers? He supplies them with forged metal goods, magical items, and the like that can not be easily made underwater. In return, they provide escorts, guides, and contacts for him amongst the local water-breathers. It would be almost the same as any trader mapping out new land in the history of the world; first, he talks to the natives. Just a thought.
wesleytj 07-30-06, 03:29 PM	Wow plenty of great ideas in there guys. I have bought those $4 downloads and have started reading them, when I've finished that, I will probably look into those novels as well. If that hasn't given me enough ideas by then, then the problem is me. ;) The idea of evil aquatic druids or clerics of unberlee bringing natural disasters to coastal areas is a great idea as well. I had thought of underwater ruins, somewhat Atlantis-esque sorts of adventures, and those Netherese ruins might do just the trick. Having local aquatics that act as intermediaries in exchange for land-based materials is also a good idea, maybe that's how we'd get an aquatic pc started into the game, since often they don't interact with the surfacers too much. I'm grateful to all who have contributed, I knew I'd find exactly the sort of help I was looking for here. I'll keep watching the thread if anyone has something further to add as well. Cheers!
3catcircus 07-31-06, 10:01 PM	In addition to the above suggestions, I'd also recommend a PDF from Adamant Entertainment that you can get on RPGNOW: Corsair! The thing is a darn good overall nautical book that details (in great detail) everything you'll ever want to know about sailing a medieval ship - weather, maneuvers, gathering a crew, combat repairs, etc. Most importantly, it is d20 - so no need to convert anything. Another Cormyr-specific suggestion is to go on Candlekeep and find Jerry Davis' Cormyrean Military article detailing the Blue Dragons (Cormyrean Navy).
BadCatMan 08-01-06, 12:44 AM	If you'd like a more Classical style, there's Chessenta, with triremes and the like. Sahaugin and Aquatic Elves live off the coast, and Water Genasi are around. If you're looking for Viking style, I think Ruathym would fit the bill. A completely monstrous game, I think that would be Nelanther. If you want exploration, you could sail to Maztica, or one of the unknown lands (like Anchorome).
ericlboyd 08-01-06, 10:57 AM	You could also play the Savage Tide campaign from Paizo. There's a summary in this month's issue of Dungeon (#138) and the 12-part adventure path begins next month (issue #139). I'll be doing conversion notes for the Realms on the paizo site for each issue. However, this adventure path will be very easy to adapt to the Realms. --Eric PS Full disclosure: I'm writing part #10.
wesleytj 08-01-06, 11:37 AM	You could also play the Savage Tide campaign from Paizo. There's a summary in this month's issue of Dungeon (#138) and the 12-part adventure path begins next month (issue #139). I'll be doing conversion notes for the Realms on the paizo site for each issue. However, this adventure path will be very easy to adapt to the Realms. --Eric PS Full disclosure: I'm writing part #10. That sounds really great. So if it's starting next month, and it's a 12 part series, my shrewd math skills tell me that it will likely be complete around september of '07, right? My concern there is that if we start around the first of the year, and play 3-4 hours a week, will we get to a point where we are overstepping the story line? Also, I'm somewhat leery about running a campaign where I don't know at least several steps ahead, it may cause me to later contradict myself... I will follow that storyline for the next few months, up until our campaign gets running, perhaps it can work. Without going into excessive detail, could you give me a basic overview of the storyline? I understand any constraints and limitations that may be imposed on you in that regard, given that they're being published. I'm just looking for a really basic idea. In the meantime, I have plenty of great stuff to read that's been provided by some of the other posters here. You all have far exceeded my hopes and expectations of what I would get back on this post. Thank you! :cool:
dragonfriend 08-01-06, 11:38 AM	Great suggestions, above all Eric last one. I can say you to use, Shining South, Stormwrak and Corsairs of the Great Sea and run a pirate campaign in the great sea, between southern Faerun and Northern Zakhara: Tropical climate, the warring cities-state of northern Zakhara, the desert, strange cultures like a nation of half-drow, a nation of halfling, the jungles, the yuan-ti (see Serpent Kingdoms), great merchant nations like Durpar, Var and Eastagund, a nation of mages with flying ships (halruaa). Well, I thing this is the best area for a Pirate Campaign... Maybe you can throw in one or two gates to Skullport, under Waterdeep (see the good City of Splendors book). Hope you like it :)
ericlboyd 08-01-06, 02:06 PM	That sounds really great. So if it's starting next month, and it's a 12 part series, my shrewd math skills tell me that it will likely be complete around september of '07, right? My concern there is that if we start around the first of the year, and play 3-4 hours a week, will we get to a point where we are overstepping the story line? Also, I'm somewhat leery about running a campaign where I don't know at least several steps ahead, it may cause me to later contradict myself... I will follow that storyline for the next few months, up until our campaign gets running, perhaps it can work. Without going into excessive detail, could you give me a basic overview of the storyline? I understand any constraints and limitations that may be imposed on you in that regard, given that they're being published. I'm just looking for a really basic idea. The complete storyline is in Dungeon #138. (About 7 pages worth.) Roughly ... SPOILERS!!!! The PCs get tangled up with pirates, the Isle of Dread, and Demogorgon in the Abyss. Think Pirates of the Caribbean meets Skull Isle of King Kong for the first 2/3rds of the adventure path. --Eric
Necrontyr 08-03-06, 03:04 AM	If you're feeling really ambitious, why not try to circumnavigate Toril? Set sail with cheering crowds from Waterdeep, Baldur's Gate or even Athkatla, then there's Evermeet and Maztica and sahuaghin, down around Toril's equivalant of Cape Horn and onto the far side of the world, a great ocean between Maztica's unknown west coast and Kara-Tur . . . anything there is possible. Draw inspiration from everything from Pacific mythology, to the Voyage of the Dawntreader to Gulliver's Travels . . . Easter Island with cannabalistic halflings worshipping living demonic statues, lost elven explorers sailing for centuries, floating (or flying or walking) cities, cities on a dragon turtle's back, rescue natives from an angry volcano-god, walk across a sea of weeds, be explorers, conquerers or pirates . . . hell, even Godzilla could make an appearence!