Thoughts on Starting a Nordlond Campaign

[Dalin]

Originally Posted by binn05

Can anyone that has read Dragon Heresy tell me if it is a good lore source for a Nordlond setting?

Yes, it pulls together a bunch of material into one place. Note that the naming conventions are different (e.g, Northwatch instead of Nordvorn, IIRC). There's a great map of the full region including Barakthel. I don't know if it has been reproduced in any of the other Nordlond books.

[sjmdw45]

Originally Posted by DouglasCole

I have, in fact, been called out for both decisions:

1) This adventure has no context, and therefore sucks. If I wanted to make [censored] up, I would have and saved myself money. You [censored].
2) This adventure has too much context, you [censored] failed novelist, how dare you make me read anything or expect that we interact with the background, which forces me to read things. You [censored].

I have received variants of this on the same adventure (in this case, Hall of Judgment, but in general it applies on any published adventure).

I'm not calling you any names, just offering my perspective on how I wound up using the adventure.

[binn05]

Originally Posted by Dalin

Yes, it pulls together a bunch of material into one place. Note that the naming conventions are different (e.g, Northwatch instead of Nordvorn, IIRC). There's a great map of the full region including Barakthel. I don't know if it has been reproduced in any of the other Nordlond books.

Oh boy, here I go again, having to find more spare money to buy interesting things. Although, I'd like a DFRPG-specific setting book.

[DouglasCole]

Originally Posted by sjmdw45

I'm not calling you any names, just offering my perspective on how I wound up using the adventure.

No, I wasn't trying to accuse you of doing so. Just that my email box occasionally smolders with fun feedback that indicates that it's hard to please everyone.

[DouglasCole]

Originally Posted by binn05

Oh boy, here I go again, having to find more spare money to buy interesting things. Although, I'd like a DFRPG-specific setting book.

One fun bit about Dragon Heresy is that while it's a 5th-Edition D&D basis, you can see where my long-time love affair with GURPS slips in to my fantasy heartbreaker rules-mongering.

[sjmdw45]

Originally Posted by DouglasCole

No, I wasn't trying to accuse you of doing so. Just that my email box occasionally smolders with fun feedback that indicates that it's hard to please everyone.

Yeah, it can be hard to reconcile multiple game styles. Still, it's actually not that hard in this particular case to accomodate the jump-right-in dungeon-centric playstyle: as I mentioned, you can just have the "hook" discovered by an NPC who reaches out to the PCs to do the actual delving, and offers to sell the goods and split the profits with the PCs.

This doesn't even imply that players will always want to jump right into the dungeon crawl every time. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't, and it can depend as much upon real-world time constraints and prior context with these PCs as much as anything. If I wanted to do the slow-burn variation of Crypt of Krysuvik, I would introduce the location three or four game sessions prior to doing the library hook, and spend the time in between on a murder mystery or sea adventure instead.

Also BTW, an adventure doesn't have to have perfect hooks to be a good adventure. See for example Bryce Lynch's praise of Demonspore (https://tenfootpole.org/ironspike/?p=645) despite finding its hooks "tenuous".

[Þorkell]

Originally Posted by sjmdw45

I don't have any insight into Norðlond in particular (I can't even tell what letter that theta-looking thing is supposed to represent!)

It's an Ðð, sixth letter of the Icelandic alphabet right between D and E. Sort of a soft-ish th sounds. Never seen at the beginning of words.

[sjmdw45]

Originally Posted by Þorkell

It's an Ðð, sixth letter of the Icelandic alphabet right between D and E. Sort of a soft-ish th sounds. Never seen at the beginning of words.

Oh, thanks. That plus Googling "Icelandic alphabet pronunciation" will go a long way towards making the Norðlond monster names more than just perplexing squiggles of lines for me. :) Being able to pronounce names is surprisingly important for remembering them. It's the difference between "大象" (elephant) and "dàxiàng" (elephant).

[DouglasCole]

Originally Posted by sjmdw45

Oh, thanks. That plus Googling "Icelandic alphabet pronunciation" will go a long way towards making the Norðlond monster names more than just perplexing squiggles of lines for me. :) Being able to pronounce names is surprisingly important for remembering them. It's the difference between "大象" (elephant) and "dàxiàng" (elephant).

For what it's worth, there are pronunciation guides in Hall of Judgment and Citadel at Nordvorn...but you've given me a pretty good idea for a freebie.

[mburr0003]

Originally Posted by DouglasCole

I have, in fact, been called out for both decisions...

My only issue with Crypt of Krysuvik is there are a couple of spots where the PCs will have no firm idea of where to go next, so they either have to trust int he GM to just "railroad/lead them there" or the GM will need to lay out some more breadcrumbs.

I like sjmdw45 idea of breaking the adventure up as small segments between other 'missions', but then you need to have Players who are 'in the game' and not just 'beer and pretzel' gamers.