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| Stormborn |
 Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 5:41 am Post subject: Entering the Halls |
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Patron
Joined: 07 Sep 2008
Posts: 20
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I woke up this morning and signed up for Halls of the Mountain King (paypal shows it went through, but there was some sort of secruity error message when it returned me to the site, I guess I will wait and see if ti worked). I wonder if I am the first?
I would really have liked to go up to the $50 membership but don't know if I can justify that expense for what I get to do.
For the record, I am pushing for a 3rd edition compatible project. Since Wolfgang wants to avoid the Undead/Orc cliche I was thinking in one of two directions:
-Infernal Devices: Some dwarf made a deal with a devil for special knowledge on how to build constructs. Needless to say in time the constructs began following their own agenda. The Hall is filled with the most advanced clockwork in the world, but much of it is tainted by the infernal and has a mind of its own. Constructs and infernal creatures, perhaps even a colony of tainted dwarves, would be the main challanges.
-Ordered Insanity: The dwarves discovered a sept of monastic aberrations (can't use mind flayers, but something similar) who guard some sort of deep gate to the Far Realms from which their master will emerge when the time is right. Since the dwarves were driven out the creatures have been conducting experiments with the denizens of the deep, and perhaps a slave population of dwarves, to create horrifci creatures. The Hall becomes a place filled with abberations, leaking Far Realm energies, cunning adversaries, and powerful temptations for seekers of hidden knowledge. |
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| xero |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 8:25 am Post subject: |
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Patron
Joined: 19 Nov 2008
Posts: 67
Location: New Jersey
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Letting the patrons vote on the edition with their dollars is probably the best way for Wolfgang to do it, but it's going to be nerve-wracking and tense for those of us on the other side of the table... there might be some lingering bitterness when it's over.
...but it'll be fun anyway!
I expect I'll have my patronage fee in by week's end (update: strike that, my patronage fee is now in), and I'll be pushing some other friends to jump into the game too to help bolster numbers for my preferred edition. |
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| Dan Voyce |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 8:59 am Post subject: |
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Patron
Joined: 04 Dec 2008
Posts: 1123
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Happy New Year! Happy New Project! Very Happy Dan! Ah, the perfect tonic for my drink-addled post celebratory brain (or rather what’s left of it). Hopfilly itz not aveckted ma ryetin ableity.
To paraphrase from way back when this first came up, many D&D settings have an iconic city at their heart (Greyhawk City, Waterdeep, Sigil) and an iconic dungeon to go with it (Ruins of Greyhawk, Undermountain, and err Sigil), so I’m especially pleased to see Zobeck get one, and to see the world’s background expanding too. The format worked really well with Tales of Zobeck, so count me in (payday is Wednesday). There’s nothing quite like a good dungeon crawl. Queue the music!
As usual, I don’t have any preference for edition, although I think Zobeck’s 3e history will earn it big support (and the cup of 4e love does not exactly overfloweth round here). So just to be awkward: How can I cast my vote for “Halls regardless of edition?”
On to the brainstorming!
Let me honest: If we’re having a Dungeon, then I immediately want a Dragon as well. Although that means straying back towards Tolkein Country, it’s still pretty iconic and there are only a few published adventures that really give the beasts the large and complex lair they deserve (although Dragon Mountain leaps immediately to mind). Here’s a thought: What if the draconic equivalent of an “adventuring party” had come along one day and decided to crack the Hall open like an egg and divide the treasure amongst themselves? Perhaps the creatures have fallen to feuding and now each is laired up in a different part of the mountains (white dragon on the topmost peaks; red in the bowels of the earth, green in the forest outside etc). Clever PCs could even play them off against one another, allowing us to mix the dungeon-bashing with some espionage and politics.
I quite like Stormborn’s idea for devilish influences, although I’d like to see a distinct flavour to any devilish going’s on. Kobolds already have a strong connection to the forces of hell, not to mention the Cult of Mammon in town. Perhaps there’s some other supernatural force that could have corrupted them from within? A dark dwarvish deity of greed, a demigod of “obsession and unreachable perfection” (drawing craftmen into its grasp), or the ever-hungry entity called The Fire Below… mmm, <b>maybe they harnessed forces from the elemental plane of fire</b> that dwarf was not meant to know? It would bring a nice duality to the piece if the topmost spires were thematically ice and cold and the belly of the beast was fire and heat. Maybe the two elemental energies are at war somehow?
Avoiding a rewrite of the Mines of Moria, my mind also turns to those vile, vile gnomes. We know that the gnomish folk have a downer on Zobeck, and this could be an opportunity to flesh out that conflict as well. It would definitely give the dwarves a very different style of enemy.
Actually, thinking some more about it. I’d very much like to see the Big Bad be a new one, created especially for the project. A good excuse for some detective work (and surprises) as well as dungeoneering, and then it would definitely be unique to the flavour of Zobeck’s world.
Last edited by Dan Voyce on Thu Jan 01, 2009 9:10 am; edited 1 time in total |
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| Zherog |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 9:09 am Post subject: |
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Contributor
Joined: 03 Jan 2008
Posts: 586
Location: Bensalem, PA
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I will be making this my first patronage. I love me some good ol' dungeon crawls, especially if they get a Wolfgang Baur twist to them!
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John Ling
Freelance Writer
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| Zherog |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 9:14 am Post subject: |
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Contributor
Joined: 03 Jan 2008
Posts: 586
Location: Bensalem, PA
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Actually, one question as someone who has never done these before:
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| For $50 expert membership for OGL or 4th Edition, you get access to the essays, design discussion, a PDF copy and may contribute complete design material for direct consideration (spells, items, rituals). You’ll have access to the playtest draft of the manuscript when it’s ready. At your option, you may also pick up a print-on-demand copy of the completed book. |
(emphasis mine)
Is the cost of print-on-demand included in the $50 price? Or is that an additional cost? If it is additional, what does it typically run? (roughly, I understand a final cost won't be known until page count and such are set.)
Cheers!
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John Ling
Freelance Writer
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| Andrelvis |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 9:22 am Post subject: |
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Patron
Joined: 17 Dec 2008
Posts: 21
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| Wolfgang |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 9:41 am Post subject: |
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Kobold Overlord
Joined: 30 Dec 2007
Posts: 4987
Location: The Mines
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| Zherog wrote: |
| Is the cost of print-on-demand included in the $50 price? Or is that an additional cost? If it is additional, what does it typically run? |
It's additional for the patrons at that level. Lulu sets the price and we don't have that page count, so I can't provide a guaranteed price, but for B&W it's usually under $10. For color interior, it's at least $30, and possibly as much as $50.
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Wolfgang Baur
Publisher, Kobold Press |
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| Wolfgang |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 9:43 am Post subject: |
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Kobold Overlord
Joined: 30 Dec 2007
Posts: 4987
Location: The Mines
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Yes, it is an Open Design project, and the only purchase links for it right now are on the front page of the site. It should appear in the store soon, but I think the webmaster needs to catch up after New Year's Eve.
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Wolfgang Baur
Publisher, Kobold Press |
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| xero |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 9:49 am Post subject: |
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Patron
Joined: 19 Nov 2008
Posts: 67
Location: New Jersey
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I think a little delay on the morning of January 1st is excusable.
I like the project idea, Wolfgang. I'll admit I dropped off of the initial premise/edition voting threads once I cast my vote and said my piece, so I was a bit surprise when I saw the direction you were taking it this morning. When I last checked, the undersea adventure idea had a sizable lead in the polls and I had just assumed it was going to win because of its novelty and potential. |
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| Krell1 |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 10:17 am Post subject: |
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Patron
Joined: 05 May 2008
Posts: 20
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| Halls sounds very cool, but alas I'm 50% through my all Dwarf reclaim the clan hold campaign <sigh>. Still looking forward to another good 3.5 adv and more Zobeck related info. |
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| Aberzanzorax |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 10:22 am Post subject: |
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Patron
Joined: 01 Jul 2008
Posts: 276
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Do Basic Patrons get the option to purchase the print book on Lulu?
If not, is there any way a Basic Patron could get just the print book with no PDF. I simply don't read PDFs so if basic patrons can't buy print, this means 50$ or nothing for me.
EDIT: I found this in the FAQ
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| All patrons receive a PDF of the final product, plus all errata in an updated edition, and a pointer to the Lulu site with the option to purchase a print copy of the project. Most patrons simply use the PDF, but the Lulu version is sold at cost, with no profit to Open Design. |
Wolfgang, you might consider editing either your post (I hope) to note that all patrons get access to the print product or the FAQ (I hope not) to note that basic patrons do not get access to the print product. Either way, at least I am confused right now.  |
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| xero |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 10:46 am Post subject: |
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Patron
Joined: 19 Nov 2008
Posts: 67
Location: New Jersey
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| I caught that little discrepancy too, but I didn't say anything because I wanted >basic membership this time around anyway. |
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| Wolfgang |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 10:49 am Post subject: |
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Kobold Overlord
Joined: 30 Dec 2007
Posts: 4987
Location: The Mines
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| xero wrote: |
| .... I was a bit surprise when I saw the direction you were taking it this morning. When I last checked, the undersea adventure idea had a sizable lead in the polls and I had just assumed it was going to win because of its novelty and potential. |
Well, it did win, but as a Pathfinder RPG project in the Golarion setting. Which means I need to 1) wait for the rules to be finalized and 2) come to an agreement with the Paizo folks about licensing or alternate publishing arrangements. It may be a somewhat different Open Design project, frankly, but it will start up in Spring or early summer.
In the meantime, I figured I'd try something else.
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Wolfgang Baur
Publisher, Kobold Press |
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| xero |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 11:10 am Post subject: |
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Patron
Joined: 19 Nov 2008
Posts: 67
Location: New Jersey
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Well I think both ideas are great, so I'm not in the least bit disappointed.
I'm holding out hope that this project goes 4e. |
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| Wolfgang |
| Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2009 11:15 am Post subject: |
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Kobold Overlord
Joined: 30 Dec 2007
Posts: 4987
Location: The Mines
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| Aberzanzorax wrote: |
| Do Basic Patrons get the option to purchase the print book on Lulu? |
Yeah, I should have resolved this earlier, but the answer is not as simple as I would like.
Here's the thing. In the early days of Open Design, the print copies were not hugely popular, and the number of patrons was small. So everyone got a shot at it. Now that Open Design has won the Diana Jones Award and all those ENnie nominations, well, the audience is larger.
And that's a problem, because there's a cap on how many print-on-demand copies can be created for an ENnie nominee in the Electronic Book category. With Wrath, we're too damn close for comfort.
So, I'm going to have to limit the number of print copies for Halls of the Mountain King. And that's why it's PDF-only for basic membership. Though the Gazetteer will be available, of course.
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Wolfgang Baur
Publisher, Kobold Press |
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