| Post/Author/DateTime | Post |
|---|---|
| #1haplo81Feb 14, 2010 13:54:00 | I need to know the primary imports and exports of Riedra for my character's backstory. |
| #2superdeadsmurfFeb 14, 2010 20:31:05 | Primary imports would include Dragonshards (which do not naturally occur on the continent), and likely magic items to some extent. Other things like glamerweave fabrics and other luxury goods are likely imported as well, just not in great numbers. Exports? Surplus Foodstuffs, Moneylending, Influence, EVIL. The continent is set up to be almost completely self-sufficent, so imports and exports are only limited - lifestyle for the average rierdran is agrarian and controlled from birth to death by Chosen and Empty Vessels. Extra wealth is redistributed to help expand the frontiers of the nation, or gain influence in other parts of the world. |
| #3yakmanFeb 14, 2010 23:59:39 | imports: |
| #4khiftFeb 15, 2010 1:30:55 | Definitely a large export of evil and espionage, this is for certain. |
| #5HellcowFeb 15, 2010 3:55:21 | A few things have been established as far as exports go. Throughout the war, the Inspired have brought in food and medical supplies. This is the medium that they used to introduce dreamlily to Khorvaire (used as a medical narcotic) and now that's an import in its own right. Looking to luxury exports, you have altsen textiles, crysteel glassworks, and sentira art. Looking to imports, I'd agree with Superdeadsmurf's list. With that said, bear in mind that Riedra doesn't import much; they already have the resources of much of a continent, and even when it comes to dragonshards, the Xen'drik colony of Dar Qat is essentially their dragonshard harvesting operation; it's a good thing to load a ship heading back from Khorvaire with so you aren't traveling empty, but Khorvaire isn't their only source. On other things, the common populace has no disposable income and is taught that magic is suspect. Clothing follows strict forms, so I'd personally argue against much import of glamerweave clothing; the Inspired will dress in traditional altson and wear their sentira pela (that horned headgear); walking around in Khorvairian fashions would send a very strange message to the commonfolk. I think the main imports would be military. I don't see much call for glamerweave, but I could see them importing mass quantities of shadoweave for commando forces. And magic makes sense - useful effects that can't be duplicated with psionically. But again, this is something that would be done on a small enough scale that the public wouldn't no about it, since they don't want to give the impression that the arcane ways of Khorvaire are a good thing. So we're not talking about massive shiploards of arcane goods. Yakman makes a good point with gold/silver, when it comes to what they trade their goods for. Bear in mind that the Inspired, at least, aren't really concerned with making a profit; for them, trade is a tool to gain influence and good will. But while that may mean they don't charge as much as they could, it doesn't mean they are just handing things away for free, which would be suspicious. So trade for gold, and then invest that gold in one of the many organizations you're supporting around Khorvaire as part of your efforts to gain influence. Some of these organizations may be fronts controlled by mind seeds; others may things that help the Inspired's goals in other ways (likely unwittingly). But I think it's an interesting topic, and I'd love to hear more ideas about things Riedra might import. |
| #6Madfox11Feb 15, 2010 4:45:42 | Mage bred animals? Granted, animals are not easy to transport by ocean ships, but it is certainly one of the products that are absolutely unique to Khorvaire since only Vidalis seems to be able to produce them. Again, not something they would import on a big scale, but certainly something they can actually use without rousing the suspicion of their own people. What about alchemical items? They are not magical, and they can still be highly useful for large engineering projects. What is the relation between Riedra and the Aeranal elves? There are a couple of unique and highly useful types of wood on Aeranal, and I can see Khorvair functioning as a go-between. I suspect that that the Inspired are very weary about the elves who are strong enough to face draconic armies and being undead do no sleep or dream. (Makes me wonder how they feel about eladrin, the other race that does not sleep.) |
| #7yakmanFeb 15, 2010 12:31:01 | A few things have been established as far as exports go. Throughout the war, the Inspired have brought in food and medical supplies. This is the medium that they used to introduce dreamlily to Khorvaire (used as a medical narcotic) and now that's an import in its own right. Looking to luxury exports, you have altsen textiles, crysteel glassworks, and sentira art. what strikes me is that everything has to be super-high value by weight--it takes a LONG time to sail from Sharn to Dar Jin, and the voyage is by no means a sure one. It's quite similar to the India / China trade before steamships and the Panama Canal. If it gets on the boat, it better be worth it. This has further implications. First is that each ship making the journey is going to be a prime target for piracy--it's cargo is worth a fortune, in either direction it's going. Could we see Lhazaar Pirates allying with Orcs in the Shadow Marches or Droaam to start up a new industry on the Sharn-Dar Jin route? The quarter reserved for foreigners in Dar Jin is probably too big for just foreigners--but I can think of all sorts of projects--like concealing the origin of imported military equipment--that the Inspired could have for such a place. Are they also interested in importing some Cannith artificers to do the work locally? How might they play off the House's divided leadership on such a scheme? |
| #8OgiwanFeb 15, 2010 12:40:59 | I think the Fox and the Yak both have very good points, but I'm far more interested in the political implications of trade as a tool that His Infernal Bovinity (Keith, I've never asked; do you have a specific like or dislike for that?) raises. We currently have a Harmonium Expeditionary Force in Q'Barra providing security. Sure, it's small, but it's a foothold on Khorvaire. How did whichever Q'Barran nation get the necessary contacts and familiarity with the Riedran government to recieve those troops? Trade. Extending this further, their trade efforts may manifest themselves in ways to give the PCs clues; as Riedra doesn't have a capitalist political system, the only reason to make a profit would be to invest in Khorvaire. So, one of the "funny little clues" the PCs may stumble upon would be a Riedran ship dumping Khorvaire trade goods over the side because they actually have no use for them. The real thing the Riedran traders are after is influence with Khorvaire merchants, who can put pressure on their respective political and economic systems for concessions or changes that suit Riedran interests. |
| #9haplo81Feb 15, 2010 13:26:59 | Taking gold and re-investing it into Khorvaire makes a lot of sense. An astute character might realize over time that the Riedrans have no use for it, raising the question of why they accept it in trade. That could be interesting. |
| #10yakmanFeb 15, 2010 13:42:10 | Taking gold and re-investing it into Khorvaire makes a lot of sense. An astute character might realize over time that the Riedrans have no use for it, raising the question of why they accept it in trade. That could be interesting. not sure about that. It's pretty easy for the Riedrans to manage that--one Chosen merchant comes in to the foreign quarter in Dar Jin, sells a bunch of stuff and accepts silver for it. Behind the scenes, he stores it in a warehouse elsewhere in the city. Another Chosen merchant takes the silver, loads it into a ship, and sails out to Sharn and spends it on a new embassy, or whatever. There's no way to make a connection. Even if you knew that the silver was earned by one merchant and spent by another, you would have no way to know that it was because the two just didn't care about gold itself. There might be some debt or business arrangement behind the scenes that the PCs don't know about... after all, it would be INSANE for someone not to care about silver, right? Additionally, Riedra doesn't really have money. So, PCs would reasonably think that the Chosen are taking the silver because it is an easy medium of exchange with Khorvaire and the outside world. They import silver & gold, export stuff, and whatever they want to buy/invest in Khorvaire, they have plenty of hard cash to do it with. |
| #11HellcowFeb 15, 2010 13:51:28 | what strikes me is that everything has to be super-high value by weight--it takes a LONG time to sail from Sharn to Dar Jin, and the voyage is by no means a sure one. It's quite similar to the India / China trade before steamships and the Panama Canal. If it gets on the boat, it better be worth it. Right - though again, the point is that the Inspired aren't actually doing it to make a profit*. They are bringing things Khorvaire NEEDS. So when we say "medical supplies", we don't mean bandaids; we mean subtances such as dreamlily, that are made using plants that don't exist in Khorvaire, and don't take up much space. When it comes to food, I'm thinking pommow derivitives - high in protein, almost completely edible. Still a HUGELY unprofitable trip, but the point is that the Inspired are willing to take that loss and the Karrnathi need the food. So as a pirate (and yes, I think Riedran ships are great for pirates, especially in Xen'drik - grab a dragonshard galleon from Dar Qat), it's that gamble - you're HOPING to get a ship fully of dreamlily, and sad if you end up with a ship full of pommow. Are they also interested in importing some Cannith artificers to do the work locally? How might they play off the House's divided leadership on such a scheme? It depends what the work is. If it's something truly unique - like establishing a creation forge to create warforged quori spirits can possess? Now, THAT'S something they would be interested in, and it seems quite likley that they have a subverted mind-seeded forgehold somewhere working on it. But I don't see the Inspired as having a desperate need of Cannith masterwork goods or a lot of Vadalis basic stuff. The Riedrans use psionics instead of magic, but they use it to accomplish the same things. They have long distance communication to equal Sivis. A network of teleporation circles allowing them to accomplish the same effects as Orien. They have their OWN magebreeders, using metacreativity techniques; consider to Quorbound, Quorbred, and the Inspired themselves. The pommow plant is specifically a creation of the Bountiful Horn - "Its origin remains a mystery, but common belief is that it involved metacreation techniques and wild zones bound to Lammania" - and I'd expect the same to be true of dreamlily. There are effects you can only generate using arcane magic, and those are the things that I'd see the Inspired purchasing from Cannith. But the Industrious Forge can produce masterwork and enhanced weapons, it just uses different techniques. Again, I could see them purchasing rare magic weapons that have enhancements they can't duplicate psionically. And Cannith MAY produce masterwork weapons slightly more efficiently than they do. But I don't see it being such a signifcant thing that they'd be investing heavily in Cannith masterwork goods. * This, of course, is my opinion based on how I use them. Your mileage may vary. |
| #12yakmanFeb 15, 2010 14:00:55 | Inspired-created Warforged? Now there's a scary thought... |
| #13haplo81Feb 15, 2010 14:15:22 | Keith, it's funny you mention piracy, as my character's hook* is that she's dispatched by House Lyrandar to deal with Boromar pirates who've been attacking their wind galleons on the Sharn-Dar Jin trade route (which her branch of the family established and still has a stranglehold on). I don't know where our DM plans on taking the story after we've dealt with the gangs, but I wanted to give him a nice juicy hook into Sarlona. *The first adventure deals with gang activity in Sharn and various factions, including the Houses, moving to put it down. |
| #14HellcowFeb 15, 2010 14:27:06 | Going back to Cannith, I definitely see a market for magic items that cannot be duplicated through psionic techniques. I'm just saying that I see it more as high-tecket items that take a significant amount of time to produce, as opposed to mass quantities of simple material. They're buying nuclear reactors, not shovels. |
| #15MrCelsiusFeb 15, 2010 15:49:23 | Inspired-created Warforged? Who says Khorvaire hasn't already seen plenty of them? |
| #16haplo81Feb 15, 2010 17:41:21 | Further study of Secrets of Sarlona reveals that the Inspired are interested in Eldritch Machines. Siberys Dragonshards (lots of 'em) are a key component in these devices. Psychic Disruptors and Spell Sinks seem especially appealing to the Quori, as sending out mass Nightmare effects should help them prevent the Quor Tarai, and 3-mile radius Antimagic Fields would allow them to use psionics unhindered while outlander mages find themselves completely impotent. Teams of Cannith magewrights would likely be desired for the construction of Eldritch Machines, as well as a lesser number of senior artificers for the major components. |
| #17HellcowFeb 15, 2010 18:23:36 | Further study of Secrets of Sarlona reveals that the Inspired are interested in Eldritch Machines... Teams of Cannith magewrights would likely be desired for the construction of Eldritch Machines, as well as a lesser number of senior artificers for the major components. I'm not disagreeing if you want to use them, but the entire point of eldritch machines is that they don't follow strict rules; they work the way the story needs them to work, require what you need them to require. As such, they could require teams of Cannith magewrights. But you could just as easily have an eldritch machine that's constructed using psionic principles instead of arcane. In essence, this is exactly what the hanbalani monoliths are. Their effects are broad and can't be linked to any one spell effect, and they aren't something a PC artificer can just make on his own in the basement. So I'm saying that you are absolutely right: the Inspired coming up with an Eldritch Machine they want to build that requires magewrights is an EXCELLENT reason for them to pull in lots of Cannith magewrights and would be a great basis for a campaign arc with a strong Cannith-Inspired connection. But if you don't want to involve Cannith, don't feel that you can't have the Inspired working on an Eldritch Machine through other methods. When I wrote about the Inspired building an eldritch machine at Dar Mun on page 70 of SoS, I was assuming that it was being developed on psionic principles or involving Edgewalker mages. But again, there's no reason NOT to make it require Cannith magewrights if you've got a great story using that. Eldritch machines require what you need them to require. ...sending out mass Nightmare effects should help them prevent the Quor Tarai.. I'd be inclined to think that the existing dreamshaping effect of the hanbalani might be more suited to this, since they are essentially trying to stabilize things. Nightmare is more of an active weapon - something to use when you're trying to conquer an area and want to prevent the people from getting restful sleep. But I would think that constant mass disruption of restful sleep would have a disruptive effect in Dal Quor as well. So perhaps you'd see radical KALASHTAR building such a machine... ...and 3-mile radius Antimagic Fields would allow them to use psionics unhindered while outlander mages find themselves completely impotent. No argument there. |
| #18haplo81Feb 15, 2010 23:08:12 | ...sending out mass Nightmare effects should help them prevent the Quor Tarai.. Good point. I've been doing 4E for a while now, so I'm a bit rusty on 3E spells. I was thinking of Nightmare just giving folks garden-variety bad dreams, rather than what it actually does. I do like the idea of the Kalashtar using mass Nightmares to screw up the Quori's s***, though. |
| #19Madfox11Feb 16, 2010 5:09:33 | Personally I am a bit leery of making psionics and Dragonmarked house effects exactly the same. It removes some of the uniqueness of those houses. To me it also clashes with the idea that the Dragonmarked Houses have an advantage on regular arcane casters as so often posted by you, Keith, on these boards (and which idea I like since it explains the central role the Houses have). Now, some of those unique stuff is useless to Riedra, especially those requiring a dragonmark to work properly (such as elemental galleons and the lightning rail). Keith mentions the creation forges, but the Cannith mark for example allows the marked person to create alchemical items MUCH cheaper and more importantly more powerful then an unmarked member. Economics is not a concern to Riedra, but power is. Wouldn't Cannith material be of higher quality then their own stuff? Similarly, wouldn't it be easier to get Vidalis to develop new magebreed animals for you then to do so yourself? Not only do you get what you want faster, you also get inroads with the Dragonmarked houses and ultimately those houses are in a very powerful political position (although more difficult to manipulate). |
| #20MrCelsiusFeb 16, 2010 7:29:50 | I do like the idea of the Kalashtar using mass Nightmares to screw up the Quori's s***, though. Indeed, particularly if the nightmares are preprogrammed with bitter truths about the Inspired. It'd be the psionic version of dropping treasonous pamphlets to the enemy's populace. |
| #21HellcowFeb 16, 2010 8:05:15 | Personally I am a bit leery of making psionics and Dragonmarked house effects exactly the same. So am I. That would be an absolutely terrible idea. Technology is a tool. Arcane magic is a tool. Psionics are a tool. Each one should feel different. But each can be used to accomplish the same ends. In Khorvaire, advanced civilizations have been built around arcane magic, using this tool for communication, warfare, transportation, medicine, and more. In Riedra, they have adapted psionics to accomplish these same tasks. They don't need Sivis speaking stones, not because they have psionic SPEAKING STONES, but because they already have a method whereby they can communicate with important people across long distances. They don't have Lyrandar heirs to summon the wind to fill the sails of their ships; but consider what could be done with metacreativity and telekinesis. Technology, arcane magic, divine magic, primal magic, psionics - these should ALWAYS feel distinctive. But that doesn't mean that one is simply better than the other. Bending space is a key psionic discipline; as a result, it's not surprising that the Inspired have their own teleportation network. That doesn't make it the SAME as what Orien does. A critical point is that I, Keith, wandering in Dar Jin, cannot make use of the local psionic teleportation circle. It exists. It's an INCREDIBLY efficient way to transport troops and material across the continent; honestly, under 3.5, this is an area in which Riedra has a significant edge on Khorvaire. But as a common citizen, I can't use it in any way. And I can't use it to visit my grandmother even if I could, because there's no circle there. If I was in Khorvaire and I had the gold, Orien would take me to see my grandmother. Looking to masterwork weapons, a masterwork weapon is a masterwork weapon. Dhakaani smiths produce masterwork weapons using ancient techniques perfected over the course of thousands of years. The Industrious Forge uses alloys created with metacreativity disciplines, producing metals literally drawn from dreams. A Cannith smith draws on his mark to guide him, using the power of magecraft. The key here is that Cannith may be able to produce its masterwork weapons faster and more cost-efficiently than either the Dhakaani or the Inspired, and when they have access to the facilities of a Cannith forgehold, even faster and cheaper than a random Brelish magwright using magecraft. And it is this that allows the house to prosper in Khorvaire; they produce the common materials faster and cheaper. Another craftsman can match or exceed the quality. But he'll spend longer doing it and need to charge more. And as you said, with the resources at their disposal, the economics aren't as important to the Inspired. Keith mentions the creation forges, but the Cannith mark for example allows the marked person to create alchemical items MUCH cheaper and more importantly more powerful then an unmarked member. Economics is not a concern to Riedra, but power is. Wouldn't Cannith material be of higher quality then their own stuff? There's quite a few interesting issues here. Stick to 3.5 for a moment, because the fluff should remain the same. A vital difference between Riedra and Khorvaire is that Khorvaire has a large, low-level caster caste in magewrights and dragonmarked heirs... and very few high-level characters in positive roles. Riedra has very few low-level casters... but far more HIGH-level casters. Hence the Teleportation Circles - an effect far more powerful than you see in Khorvaire, but one far more limited in its scope than the lightning rail or networks of Orien caravans and couriers... and one less accessible to the public. I, the private citizen, can't send a message through a speaking stone, hire a Kundarak locksmith, buy a healing potion for my personal use. But the Inspired can communicate with important people easily when they need to; teleport from any major fortress to another within minutes; and certainly get psionic tattoos of body adjustment if they need them. They don't produce as MANY potions as Cannith can; but the few dedicated high-level shapers are in fact higher level than any Cannith artificer working in the business. If the Inspired wanted to give every soldier in the army a healing potion, yes, they'd need to turn to Jorasco or Cannith. But if they are just outfitting the Dreaming Dark, they've got enough shapers to handle it. Basically, the business models are completely different. Cannith seeks to supply a larger middle class, and has a larger group of people capable of producing the goods that class would need quickly and economically. The Inspired are only worried about getting REALLY good stuff for a smaller segment of their population, and they can more time, and employ higher level characters to acheive it. Again, the fact that the Inspired may not need the dragonmarked houses doesn't mean that they are the SAME - it means that the societies are different and that they have developed different tools to acheive their own needs. With that said, there are unquestionably things you can create with arcane magic that cannot be duplicated with psionics that would be very useful to the Inspired - and that's why I'm saying they'd be buying the nuclear reactor as opposed to the healing potion. A psionic tattoo of body adjustment may not be AS efficient as a high-powered healing potion, but it does the job. But there's undoubtedly other things that simply can't be replicated in a psionic manner. Similarly, wouldn't it be easier to get Vidalis to develop new magebreed animals for you then to do so yourself? If what you want is a magebred bear just like the ones they produced for Breland? Absolutely. They know how to do that. Meanwhile, the Quori have spent thousands of years exploring metacreative techniques to produce quori hosts (remember, time flows ten times faster in Dal Quor than it does in the Eberron). So they know how to produce quorbound creatures. They've been, essentially, working on magebred (well, Quorbound) humans for fifteen thousand years. Likewise, you have the pommow plant, specifically developed using metacreative techniques. Vadalis and the Inspired use different techniques. They are better at different things. Tol Deth on page 72 of SoS mentions them trying to use a manifest zone to Shavarath to breed superior soldiers and warbeasts, and, in fact, Vadalis' possible mercantile interest in this. If you're looking for magebreeding specifically, yes, Vadalis does that quickly and well. I'm just saying that metacreative eugenics - both with human, plant, and animal - is something that's a strongly established part of the Inspired, and the very keystone of their existence. It should feel DIFFERENT than Vadalis. They should be able to accomplish different things. But they both have sophisticated talents when it comes to using supernatural forces to create new forms of life. If I had the Inspired produce a faster horse, I wouldn't make it a mirror of a Vadalis magebred horse. I'd make it something merged with the dream of a horse, something that has cheetah spots and a strangely feline grace - something that looks unusual, as opposed to the magebred horse being essentially, a better horse. They've metacreatively reshaped its musculature, infused it with a dreamer's vision, and so on. With all THAT said, I think Vadalis will be quicker to come up with new variations of its existing models. The Inspired are used to taking generations to develop a new design. Vadalis needs to work more quickly to maintain that market edge. And they love to reverse-engineer; so they'd surely be intrigued to study that dreambred horse... or for that matter, to learn more about Chosen eugenics. Anyhow, I need to get back to my other work. I never meant to say that the Riedrans do exactly the same things as the Dragonmarked houses - just that they can fill many of the same NEEDS using different tools. It is an advanced society that has evolved along a different path, just as we use technology to achieve these ends. I think Cannith can produce things the Inspired would like to have. There's no reason the Inspired wouldn't want magebred animals, unless they have already produced their own animals that serve the same function. My point is simply not to forget that they can and do have their own mystical eugenics program, their own system for long-distance transportation, their own methods of long-distance communication and of healing. These things have advantages and disadvantages compared to their counterparts on Khorvaire. But I think the holes are more narrow than gaping. |
| #22Axiomatic_BadgerFeb 22, 2010 9:03:06 |
You probably meant this as a joke, but it's a serious possibility. Iirc, the Chosen's weakness towards Quori possession is genetic. If so, then managing to get a Chosen into a relationship with an individual with political or economic influence in Khorvaire would be a serious coup. On the flipside, I can easily see the Dark "importing" individuals with useful abilities for use as breeding stock for the Chosen bloodlines. On the less "Writhing Evil" side of things, Reidra probably has a pretty massive market for Giant artefacts, partially to keep anything anti-quori out of everyone else's hands, partially for research into defences against anti-quori effects. |
| #23HellcowFeb 22, 2010 9:34:48 | Reidra probably has a pretty massive market for Giant artefacts, partially to keep anything anti-quori out of everyone else's hands, partially for research into defences against anti-quori effects. True. This is hardly a mass-quantity thing, but I could certainly see Riedra expressing an interesting in things recovered from Xen’drik. I’d see this as “artifacts” in the literal sense, not limited to magic items with an actual function or things specifically anti-Quori. Among other things, the Quori of the present age still don’t know much about the Quori of the previous age, or the precise nature of the last turn. As such, anything that can shed light on these things would be interesting. Giant artifacts of the period might hold clues, but what I’d see them REALLY wanting would be QUORI artifacts from that period – which some people might not even have identified properly. |
| #24yakmanFeb 22, 2010 12:59:57 |
It's possible--if the Dreaming Dark believes that there is time enough for such a program. My impression from the books is that the DD does NOT think that generations of Chosen will live and die before the death of the Age. Other Quori factions, like the Thousand Eyes, do believe this, and as such are much more willing to move slowly, and allow the Hanbalani Monoliths to do their job. But the DD (again, from my interpretations of the books) thinks that time is not on their side, and that more rapid action is neccessary. Now, I'm not saying that they believe that an all-out invasion, carried out immediately, of Khorvaire, is what is required to prevent the turning of the Age. In my mind, the DD believe that it needs to move quickly, decisively, and without stirring the enormous forces that can rise against them--the Lords of Dust, the Aerenal Elves, the Dragons--but it needs to move NOW. It doesn't have time for a breeding programme with the fickle nobility of Khorvaire. Now, the Thousand Eyes might see it differently.... AND That may well play into the hands of a power that the Quori do not seem to have had a lot of contact with--the Daelkyr.... |
| #25yakmanFeb 22, 2010 13:10:25 | Reidra probably has a pretty massive market for Giant artefacts, partially to keep anything anti-quori out of everyone else's hands, partially for research into defences against anti-quori effects. This is just a thought, but: It may well be a mass quantity thing. When archaeologists go to places like Sumer, they dig around for thousands of little broken clay shards... potteries, anything with cuneiform on it... and try to figure out what it means. And they are just doing it to get published. The Quori are doing this for their lives. I can imagine huge warehouses of such "trifles"--anything that they can get out of Xen'drik--filling up blocks and blocks of Dar Ulatesh. I can also imagine Chosen agents scouring the halls of Morgrave University looking for anybody who has done serious work on the writings of the Giants and on xen'drik to translate them. It's not the grand stuff of adventures, but Lhazaar Pirates attacking a heavily guarded Riedran vessel and finding it not filled with treasure, but carefully packed shards of pottery, might be an interesting way to get the PCs on track to realizing that the Chosen are more than what they appear to be. |
| #26Madfox11Feb 23, 2010 3:25:12 | I can imagine huge warehouses of such "trifles"--anything that they can get out of Xen'drik--filling up blocks and blocks of Dar Ulatesh. I can also imagine Chosen agents scouring the halls of Morgrave University looking for anybody who has done serious work on the writings of the Giants and on xen'drik to translate them. Certainly used it as a start of a campaign in Sharn. A professor had found some schematics from the giants in their struggle against the Quori. She reproduced the things at great cost*, borrowing money from the Boromar and Daask clan and slowly going paranoid/insane because she was seeing "demons" (it is not as if the majority of people know what Quori are) everywhere. The PCs all worked for Boromar and were send to collect the money. All they found was a half destroyed warhouse and laboratory invaded by Daask agents looking for the same and some kind of headache inducing effect for the kalashtar. Chasing down the professor, and learning what was going on while being chased by the Dreaming Dark turned out to be a great game, especially once the PCs started to becoming paranoid as well and began to care about Sharn. Never got to finish it since players had to leave. * There was an item that increased the barrier between the Dream plane and the prime plane which had a profound effect on the Quori's ability to possess people and a ruby golem (the last left my players wondered about the huge swat of destruction it had caused to some marauders). |