Xendrik Expeditions: Factions - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Xendrik Expeditions: Factions

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
salty1
Sep 18, 2010 23:04:59 So I was reading throught the old archive of the Xendrik Expeditions and I am wondering: has anyone had any experience absorbing the four factions that were created for that campaign (Blackwheel Company, Crimson Codex, Covenant of Light, and Cabal of Shadows) into core Eberron?
#2
Magicstar1
Sep 19, 2010 8:25:51 Away from books currently but didn't one or two (Codex and Blackwheel I believe) feature in the Stormreach books?

If I would use one it would be the Blackwheel company, easy to adapt and can offer a nice start up for an extended campaign. I was a great fan of the codex but they are harder to implement since it will be another big schemer, same goes for the Cabal although they can be a cool heroic tier villain. The covenant is basicly the Church of the Silver Flame but then in Stormreach and give some more influence.
#3
Madfox11
Sep 20, 2010 4:32:32
All four actually featured in Stormreach, so they are part of Core Eberron.

As for the Covenant, that is actually NOT the Church of Silver Flame. The majority of its members are worshippers of the Sovereign Host. I don't blame you for remembering it as the Silver Flame though, since that was the angel our group had picked when playing that campaign. From what I remember it was the opposite of the Cabal (who were mostly Dark Six worshippers with a strong preference for the Traveler), with the members of both groups drawn to Stormreach through prophetic like dreams.
#4
naturax
Sep 20, 2010 8:42:34
So I was reading throught the old archive of the Xendrik Expeditions and I am wondering: has anyone had any experience absorbing the four factions that were created for that campaign (Blackwheel Company, Crimson Codex, Covenant of Light, and Cabal of Shadows) into core Eberron?

Would you mind sharing a link to that archive?
#5
Hellcow
Sep 20, 2010 10:55:58
As for the Covenant, that is actually NOT the Church of Silver Flame. The majority of its members are worshippers of the Sovereign Host.

Is this clearly stated? The founder of the Covenant, Lirashana, is a Kalashtar who presumably follows the Path of Light. The description in City of Stormreach says:

Mystics of many different religions have been drawn to the Covenant, and all have their own explanation for the Song. Worshipers of the Sovereign Host claim that it is the voice of Dol Arrah, calling the virtuous to battle. Followers of the Silver Flame attribute it to the Voice of the Flame. The kalashtar say that it is a manifestation of the noble impulses that exist within all mortal minds—the harbinger of il-Yannah, the glorious light of the next age.

One can assume that followers of the Path of Light are a minority simply because there's fewer of them in the world than followers of the Flame or Host... though it could be that a greater percentage of them are drawn to the Covenant than followers of other faiths. In any case, I don't see the Covenant as being strongly defined by any single faith; its essence is that it's an alliance - a covenant, if you will - between faiths pursuing a common good.

#6
Madfox11
Sep 21, 2010 4:36:03 Not in the book apparently ;) I was working from memory. I might have concluded it based on some of the adventures or the campaign documentation, but I might simply be misremembering things. All I know for sure was that it was not Silver Flame specific, because our group was a Silver Flame group, and I distinctly remember reading later on that they did not had a strong presence at all within the Convenant ;)
#7
Hellcow
Sep 21, 2010 6:24:57
Not in the book apparently ;) I was working from memory. I might have concluded it based on some of the adventures or the campaign documentation, but I might simply be misremembering things. All I know for sure was that it was not Silver Flame specific, because our group was a Silver Flame group, and I distinctly remember reading later on that they did not had a strong presence at all within the Convenant ;)

It may be a misinterpretation. I just dug up my original writeup from when I first created the four factions, and it says "Paladins of the Silver Flame stand alongside kalashtar shadow watchers, Gatekeeper druids, and even assimars touched by the power of the divine since birth." The Stormreach description restates this: "The Covenant of Light encompasses many distinct flames, from Adaran seers and paladins of Thrane to Sovereign priests and ascetics of a dozen different holy monastic orders. The Song has called out to more unlikely places as well, drawing shifter shamans from Sarlona’s Tashana Tundra, utopian cultists from the marshes of Q’barra, and even repentant rogues from the gutters of Stormreach."

To me, the point is that the Silver Flame is no stronger or weaker than any other force within the Covenant of Light. It's not a Silver Flame FACTION, which people might assume from the name; the forces of the Silver Flame are no more powerful or influential than those of the Path of Light, which is certainly a shift from Khorvaire. The founder is kalashtar. But my intent back in the day was that the Silver Flame is just as influential as the Path of Light or followers of Dol Arrah. The motto is "The Just Stand Together"; it would be strange to exlude the Silver Flame from such an alliance. But I could see a writer trying to point out that the Silver Flame isn't the DOMINANT force in the Covenant and stating it a little too strongly.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 salty1 Sep 18, 2010 23:04:59	So I was reading throught the old archive of the Xendrik Expeditions and I am wondering: has anyone had any experience absorbing the four factions that were created for that campaign (Blackwheel Company, Crimson Codex, Covenant of Light, and Cabal of Shadows) into core Eberron?
#2 Magicstar1 Sep 19, 2010 8:25:51	Away from books currently but didn't one or two (Codex and Blackwheel I believe) feature in the Stormreach books? If I would use one it would be the Blackwheel company, easy to adapt and can offer a nice start up for an extended campaign. I was a great fan of the codex but they are harder to implement since it will be another big schemer, same goes for the Cabal although they can be a cool heroic tier villain. The covenant is basicly the Church of the Silver Flame but then in Stormreach and give some more influence.
#3 Madfox11 Sep 20, 2010 4:32:32	All four actually featured in Stormreach, so they are part of Core Eberron. As for the Covenant, that is actually NOT the Church of Silver Flame. The majority of its members are worshippers of the Sovereign Host. I don't blame you for remembering it as the Silver Flame though, since that was the angel our group had picked when playing that campaign. From what I remember it was the opposite of the Cabal (who were mostly Dark Six worshippers with a strong preference for the Traveler), with the members of both groups drawn to Stormreach through prophetic like dreams.
#4 naturax Sep 20, 2010 8:42:34	So I was reading throught the old archive of the Xendrik Expeditions and I am wondering: has anyone had any experience absorbing the four factions that were created for that campaign (Blackwheel Company, Crimson Codex, Covenant of Light, and Cabal of Shadows) into core Eberron? Would you mind sharing a link to that archive?
#5 Hellcow Sep 20, 2010 10:55:58	As for the Covenant, that is actually NOT the Church of Silver Flame. The majority of its members are worshippers of the Sovereign Host. Is this clearly stated? The founder of the Covenant, Lirashana, is a Kalashtar who presumably follows the Path of Light. The description in City of Stormreach says: Mystics of many different religions have been drawn to the Covenant, and all have their own explanation for the Song. Worshipers of the Sovereign Host claim that it is the voice of Dol Arrah, calling the virtuous to battle. Followers of the Silver Flame attribute it to the Voice of the Flame. The kalashtar say that it is a manifestation of the noble impulses that exist within all mortal minds—the harbinger of il-Yannah, the glorious light of the next age. One can assume that followers of the Path of Light are a minority simply because there's fewer of them in the world than followers of the Flame or Host... though it could be that a greater percentage of them are drawn to the Covenant than followers of other faiths. In any case, I don't see the Covenant as being strongly defined by any single faith; its essence is that it's an alliance - a covenant, if you will - between faiths pursuing a common good.
#6 Madfox11 Sep 21, 2010 4:36:03	Not in the book apparently ;) I was working from memory. I might have concluded it based on some of the adventures or the campaign documentation, but I might simply be misremembering things. All I know for sure was that it was not Silver Flame specific, because our group was a Silver Flame group, and I distinctly remember reading later on that they did not had a strong presence at all within the Convenant ;)
#7 Hellcow Sep 21, 2010 6:24:57	Not in the book apparently ;) I was working from memory. I might have concluded it based on some of the adventures or the campaign documentation, but I might simply be misremembering things. All I know for sure was that it was not Silver Flame specific, because our group was a Silver Flame group, and I distinctly remember reading later on that they did not had a strong presence at all within the Convenant ;) It may be a misinterpretation. I just dug up my original writeup from when I first created the four factions, and it says "Paladins of the Silver Flame stand alongside kalashtar shadow watchers, Gatekeeper druids, and even assimars touched by the power of the divine since birth." The Stormreach description restates this: "The Covenant of Light encompasses many distinct flames, from Adaran seers and paladins of Thrane to Sovereign priests and ascetics of a dozen different holy monastic orders. The Song has called out to more unlikely places as well, drawing shifter shamans from Sarlona’s Tashana Tundra, utopian cultists from the marshes of Q’barra, and even repentant rogues from the gutters of Stormreach." To me, the point is that the Silver Flame is no stronger or weaker than any other force within the Covenant of Light. It's not a Silver Flame FACTION, which people might assume from the name; the forces of the Silver Flame are no more powerful or influential than those of the Path of Light, which is certainly a shift from Khorvaire. The founder is kalashtar. But my intent back in the day was that the Silver Flame is just as influential as the Path of Light or followers of Dol Arrah. The motto is "The Just Stand Together"; it would be strange to exlude the Silver Flame from such an alliance. But I could see a writer trying to point out that the Silver Flame isn't the DOMINANT force in the Covenant and stating it a little too strongly.