Phlan 4E - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Phlan 4E

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
kerym_ammath
Nov 16, 2008 8:59:11 Anyway I started my 4e FR campaign about two months ago, and things are going very well. It appears however that the characters will be well invested in the city of Phlan and don't plan on leaving for good anytime soon. At this point I have decided to flesh out the town. In this process I have decided to request assistance from the FR forum members.

The Phlan I envision is one that is yet again recovering from it's perennial demolition. It's latest disaster occurred about 20 years ago, and involved assorted humanoids invading from Thar. Their unifying leader was killed in the battle, and the indivudal tribes broke up and fled back to their warrens, but not before Phlan was essentially razed to the ground, and many citizens had died.

Anyway what I am looking for in the way of assistance is as follows:
1) What style government would work best for Phlan? Which would be the most likely considering its past?
2) What bits of lore from the past did you find most interesting, and would be good adventure seeds or neat background detail in 1479DR?
3) Any material anyone might have on areas nearby such as Thar, The Ride, The Border Forest, Dragonspire Mts. that you have used in the past for your own games, that you think was particularly well done or thought out? Would it be a thing of the past or something easily ported to the present day of the Realms? (I think all these areas beg for greater detail in general, and well they have never received a real treatment.)
4) How does Phlan play in the rest of the Moonsea area in your eyes?

Thanks ahead of time for any assistance.
#2
Diffan
Nov 16, 2008 14:23:32 Well, considering that I don't have the 4e FRCG, I'm not sure what new developments have happend in the city. I think I remember somewhere that Phlan fell under the control of the Zhents and Bane's church. Be that as it may, I'd suggest at least looking at old maps of Phlan to get an idea of what the layout is. Now, referring to your questions:

1) What style government would work best for Phlan? Which would be the most likely considering its past?

I'd say a council, over-seen by a voted-in ruler/mayor. Or, you could have representation (via a council) by breaking it up by vocation like the craft-guilds, religion, magic, and militia. Each seat would have a voted-in representitive of that class. This council could then vote in a rotating ruler/mayor. Also, I know that the clergy of Tyr had a lot of influence among the ruling parties of Phaln in 3e.

2) What bits of lore from the past did you find most interesting, and would be good adventure seeds or neat background detail in 1479DR?

I'd suggest reading the Pools series (Pool of Radiance, Pool of Darkness, Pool of Twilight, Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor) which all incorporate the city of Phlan. Also, a good adventure seed could be that with Tyr gone, maybe the clergy slowly started to venerate Torm and now his church is in power or struggling to start?

3) Any material anyone might have on areas nearby such as Thar, The Ride, The Border Forest, Dragonspire Mts. that you have used in the past for your own games, that you think was particularly well done or thought out? Would it be a thing of the past or something easily ported to the present day of the Realms? (I think all these areas beg for greater detail in general, and well they have never received a real treatment.)

When I ran my gestalt game in Phaln, I didn't really incorporate the surrounding areas mainly because they weren't plot relevent, but any info of these areas could easily be picked out of the 3e FRCS or the 4e FRCG. The problem is, and you've said it, there wasn't much info on these areas other than the FRCS and Mysteries of the Moonsea (which I don't own, so I couldn't tell you if it has any good info). But any source is better than no source and you might be able to find something there.

4) How does Phlan play in the rest of the Moonsea area in your eyes?

I think in 3e it didn't really play any big part in the Realms, which saddens me. That of course can change with your campaign. With the Spellplague and Returned Abier, Phlan could rise up again and become a major port city along the Moonsea. You could add religious strife with an occupying force of the Zhentarim and Banites or the continual fear of a Dragon attack because it's layer is hidden somewhere along the Dragonspire Mts. Or, you can have the pool of radiance come back with occult activity bent on feeding the citizens to it (quietly of course to prevent discovery). Also, I think the Grey Box had an adventure that was based on Phlan, but i'm not positive.

Oh, and here's a good Map of Phlan in case you don't have one.
#3
cilionelle
Nov 18, 2008 23:12:07 When were the Pool of Radiance books/games set? Which year?
#4
Diffan
Nov 19, 2008 9:06:37
When were the Pool of Radiance books/games set? Which year?

For the video games, not so sure.

For the novels/game editions:

Pool of Radiance: 1340 DR/2nd Edition (AD&D)
Pool of Darkness: 1350 DR/2nd Edition (AD&D)
Pool of Twilight: 1372 DR/unknown
Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor: 1374? (don't have the novel on hand at the moment)/3rd Edition (3.0)
#5
kerym_ammath
Nov 19, 2008 14:45:57 Thanks for the input so far.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 kerym_ammath Nov 16, 2008 8:59:11	Anyway I started my 4e FR campaign about two months ago, and things are going very well. It appears however that the characters will be well invested in the city of Phlan and don't plan on leaving for good anytime soon. At this point I have decided to flesh out the town. In this process I have decided to request assistance from the FR forum members. The Phlan I envision is one that is yet again recovering from it's perennial demolition. It's latest disaster occurred about 20 years ago, and involved assorted humanoids invading from Thar. Their unifying leader was killed in the battle, and the indivudal tribes broke up and fled back to their warrens, but not before Phlan was essentially razed to the ground, and many citizens had died. Anyway what I am looking for in the way of assistance is as follows: 1) What style government would work best for Phlan? Which would be the most likely considering its past? 2) What bits of lore from the past did you find most interesting, and would be good adventure seeds or neat background detail in 1479DR? 3) Any material anyone might have on areas nearby such as Thar, The Ride, The Border Forest, Dragonspire Mts. that you have used in the past for your own games, that you think was particularly well done or thought out? Would it be a thing of the past or something easily ported to the present day of the Realms? (I think all these areas beg for greater detail in general, and well they have never received a real treatment.) 4) How does Phlan play in the rest of the Moonsea area in your eyes? Thanks ahead of time for any assistance.
#2 Diffan Nov 16, 2008 14:23:32	Well, considering that I don't have the 4e FRCG, I'm not sure what new developments have happend in the city. I think I remember somewhere that Phlan fell under the control of the Zhents and Bane's church. Be that as it may, I'd suggest at least looking at old maps of Phlan to get an idea of what the layout is. Now, referring to your questions: 1) What style government would work best for Phlan? Which would be the most likely considering its past? I'd say a council, over-seen by a voted-in ruler/mayor. Or, you could have representation (via a council) by breaking it up by vocation like the craft-guilds, religion, magic, and militia. Each seat would have a voted-in representitive of that class. This council could then vote in a rotating ruler/mayor. Also, I know that the clergy of Tyr had a lot of influence among the ruling parties of Phaln in 3e. 2) What bits of lore from the past did you find most interesting, and would be good adventure seeds or neat background detail in 1479DR? I'd suggest reading the Pools series (Pool of Radiance, Pool of Darkness, Pool of Twilight, Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor) which all incorporate the city of Phlan. Also, a good adventure seed could be that with Tyr gone, maybe the clergy slowly started to venerate Torm and now his church is in power or struggling to start? 3) Any material anyone might have on areas nearby such as Thar, The Ride, The Border Forest, Dragonspire Mts. that you have used in the past for your own games, that you think was particularly well done or thought out? Would it be a thing of the past or something easily ported to the present day of the Realms? (I think all these areas beg for greater detail in general, and well they have never received a real treatment.) When I ran my gestalt game in Phaln, I didn't really incorporate the surrounding areas mainly because they weren't plot relevent, but any info of these areas could easily be picked out of the 3e FRCS or the 4e FRCG. The problem is, and you've said it, there wasn't much info on these areas other than the FRCS and Mysteries of the Moonsea (which I don't own, so I couldn't tell you if it has any good info). But any source is better than no source and you might be able to find something there. 4) How does Phlan play in the rest of the Moonsea area in your eyes? I think in 3e it didn't really play any big part in the Realms, which saddens me. That of course can change with your campaign. With the Spellplague and Returned Abier, Phlan could rise up again and become a major port city along the Moonsea. You could add religious strife with an occupying force of the Zhentarim and Banites or the continual fear of a Dragon attack because it's layer is hidden somewhere along the Dragonspire Mts. Or, you can have the pool of radiance come back with occult activity bent on feeding the citizens to it (quietly of course to prevent discovery). Also, I think the Grey Box had an adventure that was based on Phlan, but i'm not positive. Oh, and here's a good Map of Phlan in case you don't have one.
#3 cilionelle Nov 18, 2008 23:12:07	When were the Pool of Radiance books/games set? Which year?
#4 Diffan Nov 19, 2008 9:06:37	When were the Pool of Radiance books/games set? Which year? For the video games, not so sure. For the novels/game editions: Pool of Radiance: 1340 DR/2nd Edition (AD&D) Pool of Darkness: 1350 DR/2nd Edition (AD&D) Pool of Twilight: 1372 DR/unknown Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor: 1374? (don't have the novel on hand at the moment)/3rd Edition (3.0)
#5 kerym_ammath Nov 19, 2008 14:45:57	Thanks for the input so far.