Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 HeavensThunderHammer Aug 27, 2009 18:28:55	A note: I've only recently bought the 3.5 Forgotten Realms collection. I've discovered the books do indeed stat out what the Nether Scrolls do, and honestly... I can't help but feel a bit underwhelmed. To get a good intro to the setting, I read the main book, and then the Grand History of the Realms. Between those 2, I managed to get quite high expectations... For example, there's nothing *I* could see that would give someone superior knowledge of illusions to pass along to an entire race of peoples.... I'm thinking of pumping them up a bit for a game I run. but am not sure how much they should be. Any thoughts?
#2 quale1 Aug 30, 2009 5:39:26	I recommend that you use these mechanics only as the most basic guidelines, as a starting point for further specific development. The Nether Scrolls is the Weave written down in mystery symbols and cryptic patterns. This means potentially that every magical or fantastic ability ever imaginable can be learned from them, it's the well of arcane mysteries. For every reader the experience is different, depending on talent, knowledge, race, pure luck (destiny?), the possibilities are endless. Some commoner may just glimpse at the one page and became the founder of new traditions of arcana, or discover their own unique heavy magic, others might study the whole sets for millenia and not have much progress (e.g. elven high mages). There is given a lot of freedom to the DMs, they can do whatever you want, these are major artifacts, they're supposed to break the rules a little. Keep in mind though that the story still has to revolve around the PCs strivings and discoveries, not what the artifact itself does, try to keep the atmosphere of wonder around the scroll, that of its immense civilizational value, not just give the mechanical bonus and be done. Keep the feeling that there's always more that can learned from it. Otherwise it's ideal for powergamers. Gnomes, it seems that their ability with illusions is inherent, so I doubt it's passing on the knowledge onto next generation though teaching. It's possible that all gnomes share an immaterial connection, like a subconscious field of information that all of them can access with or without some kind of initiation, like the Hundreth Monkey effect. Who knows what would other races and cultures discover if given access to the scrolls.
#3 capnvan Sep 02, 2009 3:35:41	A note: I've only recently bought the 3.5 Forgotten Realms collection. I've discovered the books do indeed stat out what the Nether Scrolls do, and honestly... I can't help but feel a bit underwhelmed. To get a good intro to the setting, I read the main book, and then the Grand History of the Realms. Between those 2, I managed to get quite high expectations... For example, there's nothing *I* could see that would give someone superior knowledge of illusions to pass along to an entire race of peoples.... I'm thinking of pumping them up a bit for a game I run. but am not sure how much they should be. Any thoughts? They're arguably the most epicly powerful and important artifacts in Faerun. But they're not meant as a ticket to ridiculous munchkinism.
#4 HeavensThunderHammer Sep 04, 2009 6:08:35	Thanks for the suggestions. I agree that they should not be a ticket for munchkinism... And that likely won't be a problem with the group I'm playing. I also like the suggestion that those bonuses may come from the "first read" and that different players/people get different things (and more mystery implied) from the Scrolls. Great advice!
#5 quale1 Sep 04, 2009 10:46:41	No prob, you  inspired some new ideas for them.
#6 lord_karsus Dec 15, 2009 22:45:47	They're arguably the most epicly powerful and important artifacts in Faerun. But they're not meant as a ticket to ridiculous munchkinism. -Tell that to Lynn Abbey, author of the Nether Scroll. Now, mind you, a singular character unlocks the secrets of one particular aspect of one of the scrolls, but is..."supremely" rewarded. In a campaign, such use would be disasterous, methinks.
#7 creyzi4zb12 Dec 17, 2009 10:23:10	Well, one thing is true tho', they were written by the Sarrukh...a BIG civilization more older/if not, more uber than the Netherese. Mebbe some people of the Sarrukh penned down the Anti-Weave....we'll call it, the Ether Scrolls, and it's still hidden up to now...even to Netherese Ultra-Liches out there who keeps on studying anything about portals and magic. Or Maybe there were some papers of the Nether Scrolls that wasn't finished due to wrong penmanship, or magic-info. gone wrong.....certain wizards out there could recycle them.