Re: Spelljammer as an immobile setting (Was: HeroSpace and Planar Churches)

From:    David Shepheard <david_shepheard@???????.com>
>Erm... ...what is *wrong* with Legend of the Spelljammer?

Do you have the 'Legend of the Spelljammer' (LotS) boxed set? If you
do, then you know what is wrong with it.


>If you don't actually like Spelljammer as a setting then why not
>create a space town
>similar to Bral and rework the NPCs and organisations from the LotS boxed set?

? Isn't that exactly what I said I was doing?  When you say
'Spelljammer' as a setting are you referring to 'the Spelljammer',
the legendary ship detailed in the 'Legend of the Spelljammer' boxed
set, or do you mean 'Spelljammer', shorthand for the Spelljammer
campaign setting first detailed in the 'Spelljammer: AD&D Adventures
in Space' boxed set?


>Alternatively if you want it to look like *THE* Spelljammer but not
>move around then why not make it *THE* Spelljammer, but stop it
>moving somehow.

Because the primary problem with the LotS boxed set is that it has
_no_ mythic feel, is filled with obvious and corny deus ex machina,
and is just generally poorly written.  I want _the_ Spelljammer to
still be out there, roaming the stars, occasionally sighted, as
originally described in the game products, and the novels up until
the lame book 6 (The Ultimate Helm).

The strengths of the LotS set was the cool new ships, the decently
written up NPCs and NPC factions, and the detailed map of the
Spelljammer. By converting it  into a Spelljammer shaped asteroid
town.  The key to success is in the back story. Why does this
asteroid look like the Spelljammer?


>Mind you if your players *insist* on searching out the new
>Spelljammer, you could end up having to create a new city to replace
>the one that you have canibalised!

LOL! My players, insist?  What do you think, Static, Adam? Should I
let you find the 'real' Spelljammer? <eg>

Of course, I don't have to create a whole new city.  The things, the
idea of the Spelljammer as a giant, flying dungeon which no one wants
to (or can) leave is just plain silly.  Basically, the LotS reduces
the 'legendary' spelljammer to a giant whale, and the players to the
lice/parasites which live on it. Yawn.  No, the spelljammer in my
campaign would be mythic and legendary, and there would be no need to
design it as a 'city'.

At any rate, I have a great deal of experience at such modifications,
you can see my work on Beyond the Moons, and feel quite confident in
my ability to pull this off.

BTW, has anyone ever actually _run_ a LotS campaign according to the
set?  What happened? Did you players lynch you? :)

--
"...How shall a man judge what to do in such times?!"
"As he has ever judged," said Aragorn "Good and evil have not changed
since yesteryear..."
J.R.R. Tolkien, _The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers_

Paul Westermeyer,  westermeyer@????????.net