Pavis & Big Rubble Companion: The Directors' Cut Relaunch

[Baron]

So the Second Age Pavis book is one of the few originals I have from back in the day. I always wondered why we were learning about the Second Age. Without any other spoilers, do we have some time-travel for our party?

[Ian A. Thomson]

1 hour ago, Baron said:

So the Second Age Pavis book is one of the few originals I have from back in the day. I always wondered why we were learning about the Second Age. Without any other spoilers, do we have some time-travel for our party?

As you have probably gathered, this re-release will be a massive expansion on the original, with (a) various small parts rewritten to acknowledge and clarify changes in what we now know about Gloranthan history and politics of the Second Age that wasn't as clear back then, (b) a LOT more details on elements related to the Grand Plan, and (c) more cults, stats and far greater details on Feroda, the Paps, Adari and Sog's Ruins

It is a designed as a dual-purpose release:

1) A Second Age sourcebook for anyone who wants to run a campaign based around Pavis City (and Adari and the Paps & Feroda)

2) A hefty background to (as you surmised) a major scenario in the series. Best clarified by a prominent subheader on the inner first page:

This special edition is also a supplement for the main P&BRC:DC campaign.

[A major scenario in Vol. 06 transports the Adventurers back to Pavis City

- either via time travel or as a visit to an echo of the past, as you prefer].

 

Edited January 3 by Ian A. Thomson

[jajagappa]

47 minutes ago, Ian A. Thomson said:

[A major scenario in Vol. 06 transports the Adventurers back to Pavis City

- either via time travel or as a visit to an echo of the past, as you prefer].

Never liked the time travel idea. Curious if it would work as "documents" uncovered by present-day adventurers that record the life events of another party of adventurers who lived in the 2nd Age? (I.e. the GM can play it as an extended "Flashback" game)

[Ian A. Thomson]

14 minutes ago, jajagappa said:

Never liked the time travel idea. Curious if it would work as "documents" uncovered by present-day adventurers that record the life events of another party of adventurers who lived in the 2nd Age? (I.e. the GM can play it as an extended "Flashback" game)

Yes, I am deliberately making it a clear set of options. I am personally happy with the time-travel idea myself as a unique mythical one-off very much related to questing and the Green Age weirdness at the site of Pavis City

However, I am also very aware that time-travel is explicitly non-canon, and that many Glorantha folk strongly dislike the idea of it. So this scenario will be written to accommodate that it can also be a quest in which the Adventurers visit an echo of Pavis City as it once was. A hyper-realistic representation formed in the same way that people visit exotic or mythic locations in quests. Where if you walk too far outside the city walls the environment starts to fade away etc

I think I understand the option you are suggesting and think it is a totally valid and interesting idea. I won't write the scenario that way as I have already done the intro of how they transition, and its just too much fun in how it engages with Old Pavic weirdness to now delete (plus I like the idea too much of the PCs experiencing Pavis City directly), but will hopefully remember to add a note in case the idea appeals to anyone. 

Edited January 3 by Ian A. Thomson

[Ian A. Thomson]

Happy to report that Vol. 02 just hit Gold Status :)

Progress Report just while I'm here: the writing of Vol. 06A (Rough Guide to Pavis City) still isn't quite finished as I have been super busy and also cos of thinking of new things to write, but we continue to get closer.

Release Schedule:

Vol. 01: New Pavis - The City on the Edge of Forever [Released Oct 2022]

Vol. 03: Old Pavis - The City that Time Forgot  [Released March 2023]

Vol. 03: Pavis County - Secrets of the Borderlands  [Released Aug 2023]

Vol. 04: Old Pavis II - The Good, the Bad & The Rowdy  [Released Dec 2023]

Vol. 04A: The Strangers in Prax Companion  [Released June 2024]

Bonus PDFs (Indexes, Maps etc): [Released July 2024/Updated Dec 2024]

Vol. 05: Prax & the Zola Fel - Land of the Giants  [Released Oct 2024/Major revision Nov 2024] ** FINAL PDF UPDATE ADDED 20 JAN 2025 (20 or so minor corrections)

Vol. 06: Old Pavis III - Fear & Loathing in Old Pavis [estimated release date: Apr 2025]

Vol. 06A: The Rough Guide to Pavis City [estimated release date: July 2025]

Vol. 07: The Liberation of Pavis (working title) [estimated release date: Sept 2025]

Edited 23 hours ago by Ian A. Thomson

[Ian A. Thomson]

Vol. 04A (Strangers Companion): 

There are two correct versions of this file at the download link. Although there is a weird DTRPG issue when files that Fabian deletes vanish for him, but stay accessible for everyone else for up to several months!

So right now I can see:

Tentacles_Press_Compressed_TheStrangersinPraxCompanion_09December2024 (This one is fine, and is the latest version with the cover-pages and inner back promo images reduced in size, so that they are grainy if you zoom in, but the overall PDF file size is significantly reduced for anyone that matters for.)

Tentacles_Press_TheStrangersinPraxCompanion_09December2024 (This is the one Fabian has just deleted. It has a column-formatting error from the version with minor corrections that was uploaded a month ago. That new error pushed one column ahead one page, thus stuffing up formatting for those pages and page-numbering for most of the book. It is noted inside as Version 1.5)

Tentacles_Press_TheStrangersinPraxCompanion_16January2025 This is new corrected replacement and is noted inside as 'Version 1.5 (Jan 2025)' to differentiate it from the previous one with the formatting error. It also has one minor correction (something I spotted when fixing the formatting) and one promo image - and related text - updated at the end of the book. 

[Ian A. Thomson]

The final (PDF) version of Vol. 05 with the last round of 20 or so minor corrections has just been uploaded:

https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/500107/vol-5-land-of-the-giants-runequest

Thanks to eagle-eyed Gary for pointing these out