Finally Got It!

[DocEldritch]

Amazon finally delivered my copy of the 4th printing PHB, and have to say, WOW! I was expecting it to be a thin-ish digest sized softcover, like I had seen the 2nd printing used to be, and was pleasantly shocked to get a nice hardcover!

Art was much better this time around as well! I have only had a chance to scan through it, reading bits and pieces here and there, hoping to sit down this weekend for a nice long read through. Did already notice some odd errata things though! (The encumbrance section comes to mind ).

Definitely giving me ideas already, just reading it. For some reason I had thought it was closer to 2nd edition (in terms of classes/style/etc), but looking through it, it seems closer to 1st (with all the nice things from 3rd like ascending AC and the SIEGE engine (which rocks)). Nothing I can not houserule (for levels past 12, for instance), quite fond of it already.

Now trying to settle on a campaign setting. Debating between Freeport (especially since the last setting book for it included some world info), a hacked Birthright setting (set on a homebrew world, but using the themes and Domain rules), or one of the homebrew settings I had come up with (have a few of those, ranging from a "Skies of Arcadia" homage, to a zombie apocalypse type setting). Kinda also want to see if I can find a decent copy of Blackmoor floating around somewhere, as that also might be interesting.

[mordrene]

cant go wrong with freeport. do u have the cnc freeport companion?

[Breakdaddy]

Freeport is always a winner. I was using the Dungeon Crawl Classics 35 boxed setting from Goodman Games for a while with C&C, even though its 3.5 native. Was easy to use and a nice setting though.

[Omote]

YES! Great news DocEldritch! I think C&C plays like 1st edition (in spirit and feel), but uses a much better rules set as a core. The best of both worlds if you will.

Crusade on!

~O
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[anglefish]

My game has gone into high gear ever since we switched to Freeport. The CnC Freeport PDF is a great "mini-CKG" offering monster, guns, magic items, spells and insanity rules.
http://www.greenronin.com/store/product/grr9027e.html

Just using the guns, monsters and NPCs, we've had fun time. Since the d20 Freeport adventures are more intrigue than dungeon crawl, the conversions aren't that demanding. The trilogy alone made CKing a no brainer for months.

[DocEldritch]

Hmm, I might have to pick that up. I had not realized they did a C&C version of it. I still have my old Freeport hardcover and the original modules, and had thought about converting, but if there is a "new" version for C&C, that might be easier!

I did not know that Goodman did a setting for their DCC stuff. Might have to see if I can find a copy and take a look. I enjoyed some of their modules, so it might be pretty good.

And several of the campaign ideas I had would fit easily into an "established" setting. The only one that might not would be the Skies homage, since most settings are not composed of floating landmasses and sky pirates

[slimykuotoan]

Freeport is AWESOME!
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[anglefish]

DocEldritch wrote:
Hmm, I might have to pick that up. I had not realized they did a C&C version of it. I still have my old Freeport hardcover and the original modules, and had thought about converting, but if there is a "new" version for C&C, that might be easier!

I did not know that Goodman did a setting for their DCC stuff. Might have to see if I can find a copy and take a look. I enjoyed some of their modules, so it might be pretty good.

And several of the campaign ideas I had would fit easily into an "established" setting. The only one that might not would be the Skies homage, since most settings are not composed of floating landmasses and sky pirates

Page 247 "Islands of the sky" of the Pirates Guide to Freeport is a paragraph explaining how Freeport could be a "sky island" setting. The PG is the rules free companion to the CnC book. This hardcover updates the setting and the PDFs provide rules for specific systems.

The cool thing about Freeport is that it's like a Russian Doll. You could have a Freeport game inside your other campaign setting. You can become so involved in the local Freeport adventures that the rest of the world is "over there" until you want to go back to it.

In fact, as I've started introducing the players and politics from my game world into Freeport's own craziness, it's just gotten to be more hectic and fun.

[Jackal]

Freeport is a great place to start a C&C game. As already mentioned, the material gives a lot of options to new CKs and, when you're ready, you can pull back to reveal the larger world around the Freeport setting without having to switch campaigns.
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[DocEldritch]

Ya, the more I have reread my Freeport stuff, the more I remember how much fun it was. Might have to see if I can get the newest hardcover for it (though the City of Adventure book does not seem TOO different, and I have that one already), and see about the C&C adaption. Shame that one is PDF only.

Debating now if I want to set it in the world that is described in the new book (which would of course require getting it), or in a homebrew (which I can describe in vague terms and "pull the camera back" as I need to). Had an idea last night during my reading for a world made up entirely of islands of various sizes, most not very large (the largest only able to hold 2-3 kingdoms, tops, and only one or two like that), with changes to some of the "baseline" races, like halflings being sea-faring nomads, dwarves having ironclad steamers, etc.

I have been reading the Codex Alera series, and the ideas there are also really neat (though the magic system would be hard to port into C&C, or any d20 game, really), especially the info you get on sea travel and WHY it is dangerous!

[gideon_thorne]

DocEldritch wrote:
I have been reading the Codex Alera series, and the ideas there are also really neat (though the magic system would be hard to port into C&C, or any d20 game, really), especially the info you get on sea travel and WHY it is dangerous!

Good series that. I even had some thoughts on porting the magic system. Mostly resolving around the fact that the characters 'spell component' is a given element or, depending on what kind of abilities, several elements.

The elemental creature(s) can be like a familiar of sorts which give the characters certain benefits. Metal familiars can aid the character in speed and reflexes, and the character can focus elemental energy into reshaping a weapon into something super sharp or the like.
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Peter Bradley

[DocEldritch]

Indeed. Great series so far, looking forward to getting the next books.

In a gaming sense (and off topic a bit), I am thinking if I ever did something in that world, I would likely use some kind of more "open" system like Mutants and Masterminds or Savage Worlds, as opposed to anything level based. Seems like it would be easier to do the various furycrafters in, especially since so far the furies themselves seem to have no "presence". Meaning you almost never see them directly attacked or killed (air furies being an exception with salt, and even that could be done as an attack vs the crafter that disrupts their power).

[gideon_thorne]

DocEldritch wrote:
Indeed. Great series so far, looking forward to getting the next books.

In a gaming sense (and off topic a bit), I am thinking if I ever did something in that world, I would likely use some kind of more "open" system like Mutants and Masterminds or Savage Worlds, as opposed to anything level based. \

Well, granted, you'd pretty well have to toss the class system if you did this with C&C. But even that's not an insurmountable challenge, since I've pretty well already done so.
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"We'll go out through the kitchen!" Tanis Half-Elven

Peter Bradley

[Arazmus]

Is there a more comprehensive Aihrde setting that Winter Dark?
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I'll tell you what I do like though: a killer, a dyed-in-the-wool killer. Cold blooded, clean, methodical and thorough. ~Zorg

[serleran]

Well, there is the Codex of Erde, which is the original d20 version of the world... it has not yet been remade fully.
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