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warlockco
Master of Realmslore
USA
1695 Posts |
 Posted - 19 Jul 2006 : 01:50:37
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quote:
Originally posted by Faraer
Considering that that map covers an area about the size of the British Isles, it doesn't show a high density of serpent stuff -- there are indeed miles and miles between all those locations.
(I've remarked before that certain misconceptions about the Realms wouldn't occur if people read the map scales, but maybe these distances seem small to Americans. They aren't small to me, or to folk of Faerūn.)
Well yeah everything is small to us  considering we have many states that are bigger than most countries  |
News of the Weird
D20 System Reference Document
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Bocklin
Learned Scribe
Germany
151 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jul 2006 : 07:32:10
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quote:
Originally posted by warlockco
Well yeah everything is small to us considering we have many states that are bigger than most countries
But you still have "miles and miles" of nothingness between places.
I remember driving between cities in eastern California, Nevada, Utah, etc. and even though one single state is x time larger than my home country I had the feeling that it was 90% of nothingness with dots of civilization intersped. Very muich "Western Heartlands".
Bocklin |
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Jorkens
Great Reader
Norway
2950 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jul 2006 : 08:07:05
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| As I remember, the Western Heartlands were somewhat shrunk between editions also. If you look at an old map you see that this area was quite a bit larger and the serpent folks area even more remote. |
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warlockco
Master of Realmslore
USA
1695 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jul 2006 : 12:53:33
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quote:
Originally posted by Bocklin
quote:
Originally posted by warlockco
Well yeah everything is small to us considering we have many states that are bigger than most countries
But you still have "miles and miles" of nothingness between places.
I remember driving between cities in eastern California, Nevada, Utah, etc. and even though one single state is x time larger than my home country I had the feeling that it was 90% of nothingness with dots of civilization intersped. Very muich "Western Heartlands".
Bocklin
Well yeah, in that part of the country we like our space. Some people will up and move if they have a neighbor that is closer than 10km |
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Chosen of Moradin
Master of Realmslore
Brazil
1120 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jul 2006 : 13:29:49
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quote:
...Plus the fact that the Mulhorandi deity Set is masquerading as the Yuan-Ti deity Sseth, lets me indulge my Old Empires obsession as well.
This is exactly my grasp in the book, too. My family plays in a Silver Marches campaign, and one of the players plays with a paladin of Osiris, that is following a Minion of Set (a sarrukh, in truth) from Mulhorand to the North. |
Dwarf, DM, husband, and proud of this! :P
twitter: @yuripeixoto
Facebook: yuri.peixoto |
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Trace_Coburn
Learned Scribe
New Zealand
137 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jul 2006 : 13:56:30
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quote:
Originally posted by Faraer
Considering that that map covers an area about the size of the British Isles, it doesn't show a high density of serpent stuff -- there are indeed miles and miles between all those locations.
(I've remarked before that certain misconceptions about the Realms wouldn't occur if people read the map scales, but maybe these distances seem small to Americans. They aren't small to me, or to folk of Faerūn.)
I'm actually a Kiwi, Faraer, so everything looks pretty big to me... but by the same token, I have to plead 'guilty' to not referencing the map scale-bars. Mainly because most of the Faerūnian maps I see don't have scale-bars, but still....  |
D&D collection: Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, Monster Manual I, Complete Arcane, Arms & Equipment Guide.
FR sourcebook collection: Dragons of Faerūn, Faiths & Pantheons, FRCS, Lords of Darkness, Monsters of Faerūn, Player's Guide to Faerūn, Power of Faerūn, Races of Faerūn, Silver Marches.
I just got back into this, okay? Give me time (or better yet money) - I'll catch up soon enough.  |
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warlockco
Master of Realmslore
USA
1695 Posts |
Posted - 19 Jul 2006 : 19:00:53
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quote:
Originally posted by Trace_Coburn
quote:
Originally posted by Faraer
Considering that that map covers an area about the size of the British Isles, it doesn't show a high density of serpent stuff -- there are indeed miles and miles between all those locations.
(I've remarked before that certain misconceptions about the Realms wouldn't occur if people read the map scales, but maybe these distances seem small to Americans. They aren't small to me, or to folk of Faerūn.)
I'm actually a Kiwi, Faraer, so everything looks pretty big to me... but by the same token, I have to plead 'guilty' to not referencing the map scale-bars. Mainly because most of the Faerūnian maps I see don't have scale-bars, but still....
My players just about fainted when I told them how far 1 inch was on the map that I was using....   |
News of the Weird
D20 System Reference Document
D20 Modern System Reference Document
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Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
Great Reader
USA
7106 Posts |
Posted - 20 Jul 2006 : 03:11:48
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quote:
Originally posted by Faraer
Considering that that map covers an area about the size of the British Isles, it doesn't show a high density of serpent stuff -- there are indeed miles and miles between all those locations.
Not arguing about distance, so much as the miles and miles of nothingness part (ie. the belief that the "empty" spaces on the map of Faerun literally have nothing in them--no settlements, enclaves, etc.). |
"Instead of asking why we sleep, it might make sense to ask why we wake. Perchance we live to dream. From that perspective, the sea of troubles we navigate in the workaday world might be the price we pay for admission to another night in the world of dreams."
--Richard Greene (letter to Time) |
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Von Seossk
Acolyte
27 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jul 2006 : 17:45:19
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| oh yeah...I used to use it all the time. One of my favorite characters was a Lizard Folk that I built around that book, though it unfortunetly seemed like I was the only person that I knew that cared one bit about it. It's a great source book for making enemies that aren't the typical stuff that most DMs throw around. Yuan-ti show that Drow, Liches, and Cults aren't the only villains that can make multilayered plots. It's also really good for anyone who wants to play a scaled one...which I personally hope more people do, as with some thought, they could probably make really good PCs, and if you need more novel reference, there's of course Dragonbait from Finder's Stone (good evidence that scaled ones can be good aligned), and then the HOuse of Serpents series, which is all about Hlondeth, and the Yuanti, not to mention being one of the first books to prominently feature psionics. |
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Ardashir
Senior Scribe
USA
544 Posts |
Posted - 02 Aug 2006 : 18:43:15
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I like the book. It's 'David Icke meets Elminster', and satisfies all my desires for twisted Reptoid conspiracies in the Realms. ;)
Though for this to have that real paranoid crackle that Icke's lunacy does, you'd have to retcon many of the most powerful mages of the Realms as serpent-folk. Elminster the Sarrukh, anyone? |
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Brakkart
Acolyte
United Kingdom
17 Posts |
Posted - 16 Aug 2006 : 02:02:52
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I did use the book extensively during the run of my "Rise of the Snakemen" campaign, which had an overall plotline extrapolated from the Dungeon module "Slave Vats of the Yuan-Ti". During the course of the campaign the party battled lizardfolk and yuan-ti in the Mere of Dead Men, Fangs of Sseth cultists in Baldur's Gate & Waterdeep, consulted the Seer at Procarlith, stormed Ssinthee'ssaree and destroyed the Cult of the Dragon cell in Hlondeth.
One of the best Realms books I've ever bought short of the FRCS itself. |
Read my blog at: http://tauntonian.blogspot.com Here I post ramblings, book reviews, song lyrics and assorted weirdness.
Check out my "Rise of the Snakemen" Forgotten Realms Story Hour. http://www.enworld.org/forums/showthread.php?t=100196 |
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Na-Gang
Learned Scribe
United Kingdom
348 Posts |
Posted - 16 Aug 2006 : 11:44:29
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quote:
Originally posted by Brakkart
...consulted the Seer at Procarlith...
In the campaign I'm running the PCs have something of an ongoing relationship with The Seer, in their race against time with agents of Sseth and Set and a whole heap of other nasties to find the Mhairshaulk Emeralds. |
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Kalin Agrivar
Senior Scribe
Canada
956 Posts |
Posted - 16 Aug 2006 : 13:48:41
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quote:
Originally posted by Rinonalyrna Fathomlin
[quoteNot arguing about distance, so much as the miles and miles of nothingness part (ie. the belief that the "empty" spaces on the map of Faerun literally have nothing in them--no settlements, enclaves, etc.).
Ha! Welcome to Canada! |
Kalin Xorell El'Agrivar
- High Mage of the Arcane Assembly
- Lore Keeper of the Vault of Ancestors
- 3rd Son of the Lord of the Stand |
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Alisttair
Great Reader
Canada
3054 Posts |
Posted - 17 Aug 2006 : 02:51:56
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| I haven't made use of it yet but am looking forward to using it. I kept thinking about NWN CRPG when I read it though... |
Karsite Arcanar (Most Holy Servant of Karsus)
Anauria - Survivor State of Netheril as penned by me:
http://www.dmsguild.com/m/product/172023 |
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wildmage
Acolyte
20 Posts |
Posted - 18 Aug 2006 : 03:20:16
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| I just wanted to second (or third, tenth, etc...) that I look forward to using material from Serpent Kingdoms in a campaign! I think this is one of the most inspiring FR tomes I own in terms of reading a few pages and having a whole campaign idea pop into my head. I thoroughly enjoy the descriptions and lore of the different scalykind races, I'm a fan of most of the new monsters presented in this book, and I really like most of whats written in the locations section that makes up the later part of the book. The maps available online at the Wizards website round out this all in all excellent piece of FR gaming literature. |
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Beirnadri Magranth
Senior Scribe
USA
720 Posts |
Posted - 27 Aug 2006 : 16:25:43
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| Lack of maps obviously was a big issue with me as well. I, however really like Serpent Kingdoms and completely disagree with msatran. I think the varied history is something fresh and some sketches out an otherwise blank gap in the history of faerun. If someone wants more info for the dales etc then that's fine by me. I just think since there are already scores of books about them that something fresh might be a good thing. |
"You came here to be a martyr in a great big bang of glory... instead you will die with a whimper."
::moussaoui tries to interrupt::
"You will never get a chance to speak again and that's an appropriate ending."
-Judge Brinkema |
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Serpent Kingdoms- anyone using it?
