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Dark Sun Nostalgia...

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
DontEatRawHagis
May 04, 2013 21:00:41 I've been out of school and in the "real world" for a year today. The only regret I have regarding DnD is how I left my Dark Sun campaign. This is part blog post, part highlight reel of what happened in my game. Sadly, I am very excited to try and start another Dark Sun game, but none of my players are around any more it seems. Also my current game group is uninterested in 4e which has always made my stack of 4e books in the corner of my room gather more and more dust each day.

Balic
It all started at a tavern. The PCs were hanging around getting food when a contingency of guards from the Noble House of Zabat stormed in. Looking for "new recruits" to go on an expedition for their master. The city allowed me to play up the political intrigue, Zabat was an aged Noble who served as a politician for many years. However, he was growing weaker in his old age, even his children were surpassing him. In one of his many dealings with the Templars he learned of a powerful Psionist who was executed for going against the Sorcerer-King. Rumor had it that he had a magic artifact that could bend people to his will.

The story arc culminated in the players giving the Nobleman Zabat the Orb of Kalad, and then getting recruited by the Veiled Alliance to steal it. In a stroke of genius the players ransacked Zabat's vault of psionic artifacts and trickets. One of which acted as a paint brush. When they killed Zabat in a fight for the Orb of Kalad, the Ardent wrote his name on the body with the paint brush.

The end sequence of this resulted in them escaping on a Silt ship towards Altaruk. A giant Psionic construct calling upon the curse of the Tembo on the Ardent.

My depature

When I realized I had to pass the reigns to someone else, I feel I chose wrong. The player was a Forgotten Realms fan and asked if I'd mind if he crossed the characters over to Forgotten Realms. Part of me still cringes when I remember hearing how he put all three of the players against the Tembo on their first encounter back and that two of the PCs had died in combat. I was a tough DM, but these guys were relatively new players and put a lot of time into their characters. Here are the stories I had for each of them that they never saw:

Sal - An elf sorcerer(Sorcerer King Pact), after escaping from his City State he would once again meet with the mentor he killed, who turned into a Lich. The Veiled Alliance had already seen Sal shine and hoped that defeating his old master would put him on the path to giving up Defiling Completely.

Midnight - Without knowledge of his past, Midnight would realize that he originally was an assassin for the Oba of Gulg. Originally known as the Tembo's Curse, he was an assassin who was known for his cruel and bloody murders. Failing a mission to assassinate a Druid in the wilds his target took pity on him and erased his past. Elemental spirits that once knew him as enemy slowly groomed him to be a weapon against the Oba.

Al - A half elf Ardent, who despite having the most NPCs out to kill him had the following storyline. Having grown up not knowing who his parents were he would slowly find out that not only was he a noble, but his father was of the Sorcerer King of Balic himself. The idea would be that he would be given the option to join his father or go against him.

Just needed to release some of what I am feeling right now. I miss Dark Sun a lot right now. Especially with being in a Forgotten Realms game right now.
#2
Alphastream
May 17, 2013 10:23:11 Don't be hard on yourself. Finishing a campaign is so hard that there should be an organization that hands out gold trophies to anyone who manages to pull it off!
#3
DontEatRawHagis
May 17, 2013 20:52:08 100% agree with you Alpha. I was aiming just for lvl 10, and it took them nearly a year to get to lvl 6 I believe. I applaud any group that manages to make it high enough to take on the Dragon of Tyr. I never have seen a report on people playing against him.

Two Dark Sun related events happened to me this week that were really good.

First I found my Campaign Setting book. I thought I lent it to a friend and they never gave it back. Now I've been writing up NPCs and senarios again. Retooling a couple of the side characters I had in previous games(some of which weren't in Dark Sun) and flushing them out more.

Second. At my local game store one of the groups that plays on Wednesdays during Living Forgotten Realms are 2nd edition players. Had a nice chat about Dark Sun and the merrits of owning the old 2nd edition Dark Sun books. He said that I was the only Dark Sun fan he had ever met before.

Hopefully if I decide to run Dark Sun at my local store I will be able to get more people into the setting.
#4
pelagorn
May 20, 2013 20:26:07
I find the 2e books to be excellent source material. I don't have all (or most) of them but I managed to keep the stuff I had from 2e.

My 4e DS campaign is still going - it's started and stopped many times, but players are still interested. I'm just happy I introduced a few new players to the world of Dark Sun. Here's hoping you have the same luck finding a game!

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 DontEatRawHagis May 04, 2013 21:00:41	I've been out of school and in the "real world" for a year today. The only regret I have regarding DnD is how I left my Dark Sun campaign. This is part blog post, part highlight reel of what happened in my game. Sadly, I am very excited to try and start another Dark Sun game, but none of my players are around any more it seems. Also my current game group is uninterested in 4e which has always made my stack of 4e books in the corner of my room gather more and more dust each day. Balic It all started at a tavern. The PCs were hanging around getting food when a contingency of guards from the Noble House of Zabat stormed in. Looking for "new recruits" to go on an expedition for their master. The city allowed me to play up the political intrigue, Zabat was an aged Noble who served as a politician for many years. However, he was growing weaker in his old age, even his children were surpassing him. In one of his many dealings with the Templars he learned of a powerful Psionist who was executed for going against the Sorcerer-King. Rumor had it that he had a magic artifact that could bend people to his will. The story arc culminated in the players giving the Nobleman Zabat the Orb of Kalad, and then getting recruited by the Veiled Alliance to steal it. In a stroke of genius the players ransacked Zabat's vault of psionic artifacts and trickets. One of which acted as a paint brush. When they killed Zabat in a fight for the Orb of Kalad, the Ardent wrote his name on the body with the paint brush. The end sequence of this resulted in them escaping on a Silt ship towards Altaruk. A giant Psionic construct calling upon the curse of the Tembo on the Ardent. My depature When I realized I had to pass the reigns to someone else, I feel I chose wrong. The player was a Forgotten Realms fan and asked if I'd mind if he crossed the characters over to Forgotten Realms. Part of me still cringes when I remember hearing how he put all three of the players against the Tembo on their first encounter back and that two of the PCs had died in combat. I was a tough DM, but these guys were relatively new players and put a lot of time into their characters. Here are the stories I had for each of them that they never saw: Sal - An elf sorcerer(Sorcerer King Pact), after escaping from his City State he would once again meet with the mentor he killed, who turned into a Lich. The Veiled Alliance had already seen Sal shine and hoped that defeating his old master would put him on the path to giving up Defiling Completely. Midnight - Without knowledge of his past, Midnight would realize that he originally was an assassin for the Oba of Gulg. Originally known as the Tembo's Curse, he was an assassin who was known for his cruel and bloody murders. Failing a mission to assassinate a Druid in the wilds his target took pity on him and erased his past. Elemental spirits that once knew him as enemy slowly groomed him to be a weapon against the Oba. Al - A half elf Ardent, who despite having the most NPCs out to kill him had the following storyline. Having grown up not knowing who his parents were he would slowly find out that not only was he a noble, but his father was of the Sorcerer King of Balic himself. The idea would be that he would be given the option to join his father or go against him. Just needed to release some of what I am feeling right now. I miss Dark Sun a lot right now. Especially with being in a Forgotten Realms game right now.
#2 Alphastream May 17, 2013 10:23:11	Don't be hard on yourself. Finishing a campaign is so hard that there should be an organization that hands out gold trophies to anyone who manages to pull it off!
#3 DontEatRawHagis May 17, 2013 20:52:08	100% agree with you Alpha. I was aiming just for lvl 10, and it took them nearly a year to get to lvl 6 I believe. I applaud any group that manages to make it high enough to take on the Dragon of Tyr. I never have seen a report on people playing against him. Two Dark Sun related events happened to me this week that were really good. First I found my Campaign Setting book. I thought I lent it to a friend and they never gave it back. Now I've been writing up NPCs and senarios again. Retooling a couple of the side characters I had in previous games(some of which weren't in Dark Sun) and flushing them out more. Second. At my local game store one of the groups that plays on Wednesdays during Living Forgotten Realms are 2nd edition players. Had a nice chat about Dark Sun and the merrits of owning the old 2nd edition Dark Sun books. He said that I was the only Dark Sun fan he had ever met before. Hopefully if I decide to run Dark Sun at my local store I will be able to get more people into the setting.
#4 pelagorn May 20, 2013 20:26:07	I find the 2e books to be excellent source material. I don't have all (or most) of them but I managed to keep the stuff I had from 2e. My 4e DS campaign is still going - it's started and stopped many times, but players are still interested. I'm just happy I introduced a few new players to the world of Dark Sun. Here's hoping you have the same luck finding a game!