Thoughts on Starting a Nordlond Campaign

[Þorkell]

Originally Posted by DouglasCole

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.

Ten thousand elephants?

[restlessgriffin]

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.

How extensive is the map? Is the setting still mostly viking driven or are other cultures represented?

[DouglasCole]

Originally Posted by restlessgriffin

How extensive is the map? Is the setting still mostly viking driven or are other cultures represented?

The Dragon Heresy book for 5e has a broader map with some other cultures, and a few details on each. I have some plans that would allow for more interesting variety that I hope to work on this year, and a pathway for more...but first thing's first. I just did the Nightmare Fuel Bestiaries, and one of the things I've learned is there needs to be space between projects, lest they die.

[restlessgriffin]

Originally Posted by DouglasCole

The Dragon Heresy book for 5e has a broader map with some other cultures, and a few details on each. I have some plans that would allow for more interesting variety that I hope to work on this year, and a pathway for more...but first thing's first. I just did the Nightmare Fuel Bestiaries, and one of the things I've learned is there needs to be space between projects, lest they die.

Any chance the full Dragon Heresy setting gets ported to DFRPG? Or how hard would it be to us the existing Dragon Heresy 55e book if you have most of the Gaming Ballistic DFRPG books?

I don't have the most recent books. But I have most of thee Nordland books (in PDF)

[DouglasCole]

Originally Posted by restlessgriffin

Any chance the full Dragon Heresy setting gets ported to DFRPG? Or hard would it be to us the existing Dragon Heresy 55e book if you have most of the Gaming Ballistic DFRPG books?

I don't have the most recent books. But I have most of thee Nordland books (in PDF)

Dragon Heresy is available in PDF on my shopify store; the setting stuff is system neutral.

However, I've got something I am wanting to do this year that will hopefully bust open the setting and world quite a bit. I simply can't go head-down and write five different local settings as I'll go out of business during the time required to write it...but I've got a framework coming that should help us all with that, in many ways.

Anyway, yes, you can get DH in PDF and/or Print and it does have some of the background it it, but even that was stripped down from my original cultural stuff, because I needed to cut to save page count.

Anyway, I beg patience on this. I do want to make not-Norse romping grounds, but that takes time.

[Refplace]

Originally Posted by DouglasCole

Anyway, I beg patience on this. I do want to make not-Norse romping grounds, but that takes time.

Yeah, seems to me spreading out your product lines gives you a larger customer base and stresses most individual buyers out less if they don't have big purchases (like crowdfunding with physical copy and stretch goals) every quarter.

[corwyn]

Originally Posted by DouglasCole

Anyway, yes, you can get DH in PDF and/or Print and it does have some of the background it it, but even that was stripped down from my original cultural stuff, because I needed to cut to save page count.

Anyway, I beg patience on this. I do want to make not-Norse romping grounds, but that takes time.

So how much non-D&D crunch is in DH? I love the Nordlond setting but DH is a bit steep for a non-DF book for me.

[DouglasCole]

Originally Posted by corwyn

So how much non-D&D crunch is in DH? I love the Nordlond setting but DH is a bit steep for a non-DF book for me.

It's a complete game: there's a lot of 5E D&D-style crunch. You can mine some of that for ideas, and some of the campaign world stuff is there, but a lot of the more detailed world-stuff got cut for space from the original planned three-giant-book set.

If you don't want to drop $40-45 on the DH book (all of my OGL stuff is on sale 33% off right now), or $16 or so for the PDF-only, I get it (truly: times are hard all over).

[beaushinkle]

Here's some work I did on rewriting Hall of Judgment. The adventure and set pieces are cool, but it's tough on the GM usability side.[1]

If you decide to start at 62 points, you won't have a supported adventure (krysuvik) for 63 more points, and at the DFE's suggested rate of 1-5 character points per session, that would take ~20 sessions to get there.

If you decide to start at 125 points, you can do krysuvik (for ~12-18 points) and then your next supported adventure is ~37 sessions away.

If you decide to do Hall of Judgment, you can immediately go to Rosgarth or Forest's End, but they're on separate sides of the continent (Isfjall is ~350 miles from Nordvorn). I started with HoJ and then built up a hexcrawl from the concepts in Worlds Without Number.

---

[1]: Some maps don't have room keys (north/south warren). There's no read-aloud text but the room descriptions aren't short and evocative. There are plot holes (why is there an undead uprising now if Logiheimli was cursed hundreds of years ago?). Information is spread out (important information about the quest and and it's antagonist is buried in the monster appendix). Many of the random travel encounters are half-baked (All-Father's Riddle; how are they supposed to know to put the item on the slab and then wait until sunrise?), require significant prep (Death Valley), or are contradictory (Faerie Lady: Elunad is explicitly not allowed to directly interfere with the party; p41)

[DAT]

Thank you for everyone’s thoughts and comments.

My normal players picked a different path so the Nordland Saga Campaign is getting some more development. I may offer it as an open campaign on line or at a local game store. Not sure yet.

Here is my plan so far …

Start in Akkerisborg (Northpoint).
Open with a cutscene arrival sequence in Akkerisborg (general impressions, with minimal details, unless Doug publishes a new book for “Akkerisborg, Gateway to Northern Nordlond”) in late winter. The PCs from Southern Nordlond, surrounding nations, and “Far-Away” can arrive via a sailing ship, the knarr Ardent’s Fury, and any PCs from Northern Nordlond can walk in or arrive by barge. First thing the PCs will find is that prices are really high, and (assuming they have used up most of their starting cash for adventuring gear), they will need to find a place to stay the first night and earn some copper or silver really quick.

I will have a friendly food stall merchant or other local they talk to in the street (e.g., an All-Father priest), observe they are new to the city and direct them to a lower cost tavern and inn (“The Shattered Barge”, unless a new book gives a different name) near the river docks. At the inn, the Inn Keeper is an ex-adventurer with a soft spot for new adventurers, so it will be easy for the PCs to arrange for secure lodging for the night (if only a warm piece of floor in the common room) and a meal.

Assuming the PCs start asking around about work, they will get a few rumors about lack of local jobs right now, but there is adventures and lots of wealth to be made around Nordvorn (trips into The Veiddarlond (the Hunted Lands) and trips from Löngbrú into the Endalaus Forest and Dragongrounds, etc.). I will also leave a rumor about Skógurenda (future hook for the Forest End) and the story of Krysuvik (hook for The Crypt of Krysuvik adventure). I’ll then add a “friendly” bar fight to add some excitement and to help cement the group. Then later in the evening, one of their new drinking buddies from the fight suggest they see Old Thangruth Brewblade, a Dvergr boat captain on the river docks early tomorrow. Captain Brewblade is running his ship, The Green Shield (a byrding), up the Jotunnáin River to Nordvorn, and might be willing to hire the PCs as guards.

If the PCs don’t follow-up on the job lead, or flub the interview with Captain Brewblade, they will have a couple lean weeks, before another opportunity turns up. Might let them “smell a rat”.

If the PCs follow-up on the job lead, and don’t flub it, Captain Brewblade will offer them positions as guards and assistants on the Green Shield. He will offer a standard $200 a week, for 2 or 3 weeks. The ship will leave later that day, so the PCs will only have limited time to make any purchases (assuming they have any funds) before they leave.

At this point I will have a series of odd little side adventures planned for the party to experience as they travel up river for 2 to 3 weeks.

Side adventures will include:
• fights with bandits, river pirates, river creatures, faeries, and dragonkin;
• have a stop in Járngarðr to set ties (hooks for the Dragons of Rosgarth adventure);
• have a stop in Áinferill, and a visit to the Wandering Skald Inn, to provide more about the story of Krysuvik (hook for The Crypt of Krysuvik adventure);
• side job to transporting goods from Áinferill to the new village of Elskaðr (set prior to the events in Citadel at Nordvorn, and set additional hooks for future); and
• stop in Löngbrú for later adventure ties
When the PCs are finally coming into Nordvorn, I’ll have the recommended “introduction” encounters as they get to Nordvorn (Citadel at Nordvorn). They will arrive in Nordvorn at the start of the Equinox Festival.

Let the PCs explore Nordvorn for a few days, meeting NPCs, getting rumors, etc. Introduce, or re-introduce, the story of Krysuvik (hook for The Crypt of Krysuvik adventure).

Main Sequence –
Let the PCs pick up a rumor about a job about guarding a caravan into The Veiddarlond (the Hunted Lands). If the PCs follow-up on the rumor, they learn about a supply caravan to Skalavik, which should tie back to the Krysuvik story (Crypt of Krysuvik adventure) that I have been dropping hooks for since Akkerisborg.

Throw a bandit or low-level faerie encounter during the trip, and let the caravan and PCs arrive in Skalavik, for the Crypt of Krysuvik adventure. I’ll plan to beef up the Crypt of Krysuvik adventure if the PCs are much above 125-points when they arrive.

After a successful Crypt of Krysuvik adventure, have the now “undead experts” Heroes be approached about an undead problem. If they follow the hook, that will lead to a Barrowmaze inspired adventure.

The Barrowmaze inspired adventure will be a small village threatened by restless undead, which are coming from a nearby valley or moor filled with a 100+ or so ancient Barrows. Something (demon influenced) has riled the undead up, and the PCs need to delve into the Barrows and figure it out and stop it before the Nordlonds are engulfed with undead.

Have a couple options with where I could place the Barrows and what community is initially threatened.
1) Barrows in the Hunted Lands, with a small village (maybe even Skalavik) being threatened.
2) Barrows in the Endalaus Forest, with a) Löngbrú, b) Áinferill, or c) Elskaðr being threatened.
3) Barrows in the Audurfjall mountains, with Járngarðr being threatened.
Barrows in the Hunted Lands makes drawing the PCs to the next planned adventure (once they have the experience) more natural. Barrows in the Endalaus Forest makes ties to the future Elskaðr situation (Citadel at Nordvorn) more natural, and allows for change of pace adventures easier (head to some other ruins in the Forest). Barrows in the Audurfjall mountains makes ties for the future Járngarðr situation (Dragons of Rosgarth adventure) more natural. All good options at one level. I could place Barrows in all three, but should probably only use the full Barrowmaze inspired adventure in one. So 10 Barrows in one place, 20 Barrows in the second, and 100+ in the third?

After the Barrows issue is solved (and the PCs are ~250-point), a trip over to Nethanfoss for the Castellan of Nordvorn, then a trip up the Wodenain to Isfjall and beyond (Hall of Judgement adventure) is the plan. After the Hall of Judgement is found, have a few options.

As I see it, I:
1) Can draw the PCs back to Nordvorn to resolve the Elskaðr situation
2) Can draw the PCs to Járngarðr (“the Iron Garden”) and on into the Endalaus Forest on a mission from The Gods (Dragons of Rosgarth adventure)
3) Can draw the PCs down the Jotunnáin River to Akkerisborg, and up the coast to Skógurenda (Forest End adventure).
The order sort of depends on how many points the PCs are. Dragons of Rosgarth need the PCs at 300+. 250+ should be fine for Elskaðr. I’m not sure how many points for Forest End.


Any thoughts?