What I did with SotSM

Not really trying to continue the flame stuff going on, but here's some of what
I did with the 3e SJ setting is slamming so much.

Characters started on the Human type world, characters don't know it's going to
be SJ campaign. I've told them that there are no Drow in this campaign, I don't
like them, they suck. Also, I told them there are few dwarves and elves, and
definitely no "high" or "grey" elves. They grew up together in the same
village, some of them knew each other, some didn't, until it's raided and most
of village destroyed. They are recruited to chase after bad guys. Did some
small stuff to get them to 3rd level including a rescue hero type adventure on
the way to an island city. (I pulled the adventure details from a Dungeon mag,
and only modified the ending, I am a lazy/busy DM).

Turns out the two dwarves were princes from a nearby colony. Party rescues one
prince and becomes big heroes. During the multi-day celebration, characters
learn that the Dwarves came from "far, far, away". And that they once had a
greater civilization. These dwarves are part of a diaspora that happens when
the Mind Flayers discovered this Sphere.

Party pays/hired to guard a ship from main continent to island with free port
pirate nation. Island starts another module I bought with 3 parts. In the end,
characters are famous in the area, save the nation etc. and are now 8th level.
They are now shown to an Arcane that wants them to deliver something to the
Elven forest world. Party doesn't know what it is.

Item is stolen by the "evil" elven family before delivery, and party chases bad
guys across the forest world until it's recover and return. As a reward, the
party is granted a smaller elven ship and granted a license to seek prizes as a
privateer.

Party learns the ins and outs of SpellJamming. I kept the Crystal Sphere
concept, it solves too many problems for me, I used the 3e ship combat rules
that someone here was kind enough to provide, but I mostly tried to just use
this as a way to get from A to B, none of us were really interested in the ship
combat, it was more about the settings, and the scale. Allowed them to now use
the Prestige Classes if they wanted them. I knew where this was headed, and was
making suggestions to them that would make some of the kits I thought they
might like available when the time came.

Party also learns about the Dwarves, and their situation. Party ends up meeting
them, and going to the Orc/Dwarven Town. Turns out that given a common enemy
that is mean enough, they can get along enough enough to survive. After a few
generations of being raised with the dwarves, the Orcs with their shorter life
spans have known nothing other that their current situation. Some of the older
dwarves remember when orcs were enemies. This setting is very gritty, brutal,
and entrenched, my players loved it. Not what they were expecting at all after
the softer, more traditional fantasy setting.

Party now does the Mind Flayer Prison Break from Dungeon magazine. Again, I
didn't have to do much to it to make it fit.

One of the Prisoners tells them the Flayers are looking for a relic. All he
knows is the name of it. Party figures out a way to regain contact with the
dwarven comminity and create a small group of other spacers that will run the
mind flayer blockades, and help alleviate some of the strains on the
dwarven/orc community.

Party then searches the sphere for news of this relic. They are eventually
point to the desert planet where they find lots of powerful undead, and the
small but powerful(necro)magocracy nation that uses them. This was fun. Lots of
powerful mages to kill, undead galore, tombs to loot etc.

Relic is in the hands of a lich (of course). Eventually the lich is found,
dispatched, and the relic recovered. On the way back, the party is attacked by
strange spider ships, full of Drow? "But I thought there weren't any drow?"
Oops, I lied. Relic is protected, but just barely. Their ship isn't safe, party
is on the run from "Ninja-Drow Assassins". Eventually they find that the Relic
is a powerful type of spell jamming helm and they can use the to crash huge
asteroid into one of the planets, just like they did millenia ago with the
desert planet, when it was the only inhabited world.

Of course there were some complications, but in the end, the bad guys lose and
good guys win, everyone is happy. Hooray.

I didn't proof read this at all. Hope it makes sense. Anyway, I guess when I
see all the venom directed at the SotSM, how it's worse than useless, it's
harmful to the game, etc. I just don't get it.

Was it incomplete? Sure. Could it have been better? Yep. But was it useless,
driving people away from SJ? I disagree. I ran a whole campaign there, and
never even had or wanted to leave the sphere.

Have fun,
Eric Collins
(no relation to the Andy Collins)

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