Wow. You guys are brilliant here. Salacious Angel and limetom in particular. Your views on all this are quite fascinating. I only wish I could say something relatively intelligent to add to this discussion, but I can't really think of anything that hasn't already been said in a much more thoughtful way than what I could come up with.
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#2
Campaign Elements and Design (Archived) / Wondrous Strange [Dreams, Madness, Spirits]
February 07, 2007, 09:38:21 PM
So, it seems dreams are material things. Ok. So, are dreams things in some other plane leaking into the minds of sleeping people, or is the dream world the physical manifestation of whatever people see when they're dreaming?
If the dreams are there first and leak into the minds of dreamers: Why is it that the dreams come into human heads in the first place? Do they only come to certain people? Is there, for instance, an isolated valley that the dreams can't get to, or a strange race that doesn't dream at all? Who decides what dreams people see? Can the beings in the dream world tell that they're being seen? Do the sleeping humans actually enter this realm, or do they just see it?
If people make the dreams: What happens to the space the dreams take up when they exist? Do all dreams appear on a single plane, or does each person have their own active demiplane? Is every entity within the dreams its own being, or do the creatures there change form and roles to match the dreams? Do they die when the dreamers wake up? If so, are there people who have had their dreams "rebel" against them? If somebody has a really powerful dream, can it ever gain enough power to escape into the real world?
With your three basic planes (Far Realms, Dreamscape, Spirit Realm) I can pull some parallels. The FR and DS are both extensions of the human psyche. Far Realms is madness, Dreamscape the subconscious. If you used kind of a psionic-y explanation, the Spirit Realm could house disembodied consciousnesses. So if you have them kind of radiating outward, you have the Material (the Thinkers withtin flesh), the Spirits (the Transcended Thinkers), the Dreamscape (flowing into the minds of the Thinkers), and the Far Realms (corrupting the Thinkers/created by corruption). Maybe you could create other planes based off this concept: demiplanes devoted to human emotion, for instance.
If the dreams are there first and leak into the minds of dreamers: Why is it that the dreams come into human heads in the first place? Do they only come to certain people? Is there, for instance, an isolated valley that the dreams can't get to, or a strange race that doesn't dream at all? Who decides what dreams people see? Can the beings in the dream world tell that they're being seen? Do the sleeping humans actually enter this realm, or do they just see it?
If people make the dreams: What happens to the space the dreams take up when they exist? Do all dreams appear on a single plane, or does each person have their own active demiplane? Is every entity within the dreams its own being, or do the creatures there change form and roles to match the dreams? Do they die when the dreamers wake up? If so, are there people who have had their dreams "rebel" against them? If somebody has a really powerful dream, can it ever gain enough power to escape into the real world?
With your three basic planes (Far Realms, Dreamscape, Spirit Realm) I can pull some parallels. The FR and DS are both extensions of the human psyche. Far Realms is madness, Dreamscape the subconscious. If you used kind of a psionic-y explanation, the Spirit Realm could house disembodied consciousnesses. So if you have them kind of radiating outward, you have the Material (the Thinkers withtin flesh), the Spirits (the Transcended Thinkers), the Dreamscape (flowing into the minds of the Thinkers), and the Far Realms (corrupting the Thinkers/created by corruption). Maybe you could create other planes based off this concept: demiplanes devoted to human emotion, for instance.
#3
Campaign Elements and Design (Archived) / Evil Elves
February 07, 2007, 09:05:38 PM
Minor weapons with crazy magic powers are good, but what about really, really big ones? Massive golems, for instance, or huge portals that open to the plane of fire as a sort of instant bomb? Dropping one of those things on a human city and then opening it would cause untold destruction (think of Stargate SG-1 when they put the gate in the middle of a star). Maybe they're not just powerful flesh-rending spells, but flesh-rending spells that have the living spell template applied? An inexorable approaching mist, and anyone inside is flayed alive, but you can't see through the mist, you can only hear the screams...
You could also have an artifact that boosts effective caster level by something like thirty levels. A giant device that takes an hour or so to charge, but you can fire off a fireball so big it could level a city. Something like that.
Then there are creatures. Indestructible monsters like the Tarrasque at the elves command would be an immeasurable powerful weapon.
You could also have an artifact that boosts effective caster level by something like thirty levels. A giant device that takes an hour or so to charge, but you can fire off a fireball so big it could level a city. Something like that.
Then there are creatures. Indestructible monsters like the Tarrasque at the elves command would be an immeasurable powerful weapon.
#4
CeBeGia / Discussion: Pantheon
February 06, 2007, 03:15:15 AM
Sorry to pop in here randomly, but I was wondering what caused people to ascend to godhood in the empire. Perhaps the people believe in the innate divinity of their rulers ("chosen by fate/gods" or some such) and that belief is so powerful the rulers ascend? If there haven't been any ascensions in awhile, it's because the new rulers of the empire haven't inspired the fervent loyalty and faith that the rulers of the older empire had. Drop in population would affect them as well.
What about a reincarnation/soul transference thing? The gods send portions of themselves in new rulers, and these seeds of divinity allow the rulers to become gods (or saints or whatever) upon death? Maybe gods fight over who gets to put their particular divine spark in the new ruler? Imagine Devious trying to put a bit of his dark soul in the new king, but Garett has to beat him to it. Maybe it's ritualistic thing that occurs when the king is crowned? Or maybe they're born with it? Would the gods be racing to get their souls into rulers? Would they have a measure of control over the soul recipient?
Idea: Devious, being a lich, knows a thing or to about storing the soul somewhere safe. What if he hid a bit of his soul in the ancestral crown? No matter who gets their soul in the ruler, Devious always has some measure of control over the king as long as the crown is on his head. That way he doesn't have to worry about the bickering over who gets the next ruler and he can focus on more important things.
What about a reincarnation/soul transference thing? The gods send portions of themselves in new rulers, and these seeds of divinity allow the rulers to become gods (or saints or whatever) upon death? Maybe gods fight over who gets to put their particular divine spark in the new ruler? Imagine Devious trying to put a bit of his dark soul in the new king, but Garett has to beat him to it. Maybe it's ritualistic thing that occurs when the king is crowned? Or maybe they're born with it? Would the gods be racing to get their souls into rulers? Would they have a measure of control over the soul recipient?
Idea: Devious, being a lich, knows a thing or to about storing the soul somewhere safe. What if he hid a bit of his soul in the ancestral crown? No matter who gets their soul in the ruler, Devious always has some measure of control over the king as long as the crown is on his head. That way he doesn't have to worry about the bickering over who gets the next ruler and he can focus on more important things.
#5
The Dragon's Den (Archived) / The Rogues' Gallery
February 04, 2007, 01:03:25 AM
Greetings all, I am Gremlin, refered to affectionately as Grem if preferred. I haven't been DMing for very long, and have only played RPGs for about 4 years, consistently for only one. I joined this site in hopes of being able to flesh out a campaign world of my design, and come up with a few more specific cultures, historical events, and other such bric-a-brac.
-Gaming systems you use
I play standard D&D 3.5, although I've also looked into Mutants and Masterminds from Green Ronin. A friend who has been playing for years made his own homebrew system that I'd like to try, as well.
-General gaming history
In 7th grade I was introduced to GURPS by a friend. My interest in RPGs was ignited. After that, I played a Silver Age Sentinels campaign with some friends. Later I found out some of my theatre friends played D&D, so I was introduced to that system. I tried DMing for it initially, but failed because I didn't really grasp the mechanics. Later I discovered the gaming group at my school and became an avid fan. Now I play another campaign with those earlier theatre buddies, but now I know a great deal more about the system and have been able to maintain a campaign for a few months now.
-Personal likes and dislikes
I love food. I'm a real gourmet and food historian. The main reason I will be excited once I turn 21 is that I can finally entertain properly with the right dinner and desert wines. I am very much a nerd; I enjoy superheroes, school and mathematics. I do a great deal of community theatre, as well. I love to argue, probably too much for my own good. I despise fools and injustice, which usually go hand in hand.
-Strengths and weaknesses in game design
I'm probably not as creative as I'd like to think I am. Many of the ideas I have which I think are just amazing will seem childish and foolish when viewed objectively, or just will be very familiar to people using other settings.
-What published settings have you used/do you like?
I like Forgotten Realms, but I'm not obsessed by it. The divine intrigue in particular is fascinating; I love gods. I've played Eberron a few times, and I like some of the ideas but not others, and some I both liked and hated, such as the daelkyr (I love fleshgrafters, but I didn't like the idea that illithids had anyone they called master)
-Major influences on your world-building
Probably a lot of things I don't realize. Many of my ideas seems unoriginal when seen by others. I probably pull a lot of things from Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk, and Harry Potter without realizing it. I need to broaden my horizons, I know.
-Gaming systems you use
I play standard D&D 3.5, although I've also looked into Mutants and Masterminds from Green Ronin. A friend who has been playing for years made his own homebrew system that I'd like to try, as well.
-General gaming history
In 7th grade I was introduced to GURPS by a friend. My interest in RPGs was ignited. After that, I played a Silver Age Sentinels campaign with some friends. Later I found out some of my theatre friends played D&D, so I was introduced to that system. I tried DMing for it initially, but failed because I didn't really grasp the mechanics. Later I discovered the gaming group at my school and became an avid fan. Now I play another campaign with those earlier theatre buddies, but now I know a great deal more about the system and have been able to maintain a campaign for a few months now.
-Personal likes and dislikes
I love food. I'm a real gourmet and food historian. The main reason I will be excited once I turn 21 is that I can finally entertain properly with the right dinner and desert wines. I am very much a nerd; I enjoy superheroes, school and mathematics. I do a great deal of community theatre, as well. I love to argue, probably too much for my own good. I despise fools and injustice, which usually go hand in hand.
-Strengths and weaknesses in game design
I'm probably not as creative as I'd like to think I am. Many of the ideas I have which I think are just amazing will seem childish and foolish when viewed objectively, or just will be very familiar to people using other settings.
-What published settings have you used/do you like?
I like Forgotten Realms, but I'm not obsessed by it. The divine intrigue in particular is fascinating; I love gods. I've played Eberron a few times, and I like some of the ideas but not others, and some I both liked and hated, such as the daelkyr (I love fleshgrafters, but I didn't like the idea that illithids had anyone they called master)
-Major influences on your world-building
Probably a lot of things I don't realize. Many of my ideas seems unoriginal when seen by others. I probably pull a lot of things from Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk, and Harry Potter without realizing it. I need to broaden my horizons, I know.
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