Upland Marsh Heroquests

[kalidor]

On 1/24/2023 at 3:31 AM, Erol of Backford said:

Simple enough, never set foot in the marsh or venture in very deeply, only destroy those undead that come to the fringes, shrink the swap size and eventually they'll come out to play... burn your dead so they cannot be made into undead. Everyone learns to release undead and the corpses and or skeletons whatever need to be brough out of the swap to be burned. Small raids to the fringes may be able to deplete rank and file undead over time if done with coordination? Curious why attempts have been made to venture deeply into the marsh for any reason? Seems like a suicide move from what has been printed? Has anyone thought to use Greek fire on the marsh archers at a time? Forget drain the swamp, how about burn it?

I vote for a Tanien heroquest, water gone and a lot of crispy undead with a garnish of crispy blackthorn trees. 

[Joerg]

6 hours ago, kalidor said:

I vote for a Tanien heroquest, water gone and a lot of crispy undead with a garnish of crispy blackthorn trees. 

There is a reason why the God Learners stopped trying to invade Brithos and instead cooperate with the Zzaburi when Umaliath, the biggest of the firebergs that resulted from the Battle of Tanian's Victory, re-surfaced on the western seas and threatened to collide with the western islands. Those fires will consume any stuff with even a slight water association. The neighoring Lismelder had better be prepared to flee all the way to the Dead Place to escape such a fire, and Nochet and other places along the river would be doomed. Styx Grotto might explode in flame, as well as the Marzeel River, while the Skyfall lights up as Tanian's fire attempts to return into the sky.

 

[kalidor]

4 hours ago, Joerg said:

There is a reason why the God Learners stopped trying to invade Brithos and instead cooperate with the Zzaburi when Umaliath, the biggest of the firebergs that resulted from the Battle of Tanian's Victory, re-surfaced on the western seas and threatened to collide with the western islands. Those fires will consume any stuff with even a slight water association. The neighoring Lismelder had better be prepared to flee all the way to the Dead Place to escape such a fire, and Nochet and other places along the river would be doomed. Styx Grotto might explode in flame, as well as the Marzeel River, while the Skyfall lights up as Tanian's fire attempts to return into the sky.

 

Hey you can't use nuclear weapons without a little collateral damage hehe 😈😈

[Erol of Backford]

On 1/23/2023 at 8:31 PM, Erol of Backford said:

Has anyone thought to use Greek fire on the marsh...

I said Greek fire not Firebergs where did that come from!? Massed flaming archers oil or the like not the end of Glorantha?

[jajagappa]

1 hour ago, Erol of Backford said:

I said Greek fire not Firebergs where did that come from!?

The equivalent of Greek Fire are the burning waters of Tanian, the source of the ever-burning firebergs. However, check out Tanian's Grotto in the Puzzle Canal of the Big Rubble if you want to get some and try it out.

[Joerg]

15 hours ago, Erol of Backford said:

I said Greek fire not Firebergs where did that come from!? Massed flaming archers oil or the like not the end of Glorantha?

You'll have to ask @kalidor who suggested a Tanian heroquest when a limited-size Moonburn would be a lot safer to control. That might still release Oakfed, but in a damp swamp Oakfed's options are limited, especially if your opposition controls the water levels.

[kalidor]

5 hours ago, Joerg said:

You'll have to ask @kalidor who suggested a Tanian heroquest when a limited-size Moonburn would be a lot safer to control. That might still release Oakfed, but in a damp swamp Oakfed's options are limited, especially if your opposition controls the water levels.

I proposed it as a joke, imagining delecti's face I found it funny, and a not chaotic solution although brutal. Moonburn was chaotic because fire burns not moon. I usually follow Ernalda's lead and look for another way. Fire was defeated by water. Well, maybe Nelat will serve, sure as hell that undead won't survive. 

Edited January 26, 2023 by kalidor

[Joerg]

50 minutes ago, kalidor said:

I proposed it as a joke, imagining delecti's face I found it funny, and a not chaotic solution although brutal. Moonburn was chaotic because fire burns not moon. I usually follow Ernalda's lead and look for another way. Fire was defeated by water. Well, maybe Nelat will serve, sure as hell that undead won't survive. 

For a water-based solution, a hero might redirect a branch of the Styx through the Upland Marsh. Take Styx Water, Delecti!

(But Delecti is not your ordinary Vivamort rune lord. His body-migrating self probably can withstand limited contact with he Styx, although his Dancers might succumb to that Darkness. Still, he is probably the most stylish undead, with his harem of beautiful monsters.)

[Erol of Backford]

Ok we'll drain the swamp by digging a canal 60km long, 6m deep and 10m wide. A typical dwarven massive stone statue moves about 360 cubic meters of earth an hour (they are slow but relentless). The canal is going to require about 3,600,000 cubic meters of earth be moved. So 4 of these excavators working days only, dwarf union rules, could do this canal in about 200 days. Add a few earth elementals to assist and some form-set earth/stone spells by rock dwarves and the swap is drained. The ducks get new jobs as Venetian gondola oarsmen and nothing is protecting the rotten wood soon to be dried and burnt marsh. 10 dwarves, a couple dozen nice stone bridges, a few new Geo's Inns and forgot the old geezer Delecti...

 

[John Biles]

3 minutes ago, Erol of Backford said:

Ok we'll drain the swamp by digging a canal 60km long, 6m deep and 10m wide. A typical dwarven massive stone statue moves about 360 cubic meters of earth an hour (they are slow but relentless). The canal is going to require about 3,600,000 cubic meters of earth be moved. So 4 of these excavators working days only, dwarf union rules, could do this canal in about 200 days. Add a few earth elementals to assist and some form-set earth/stone spells by rock dwarves and the swap is drained. The ducks get new jobs as Venetian gondola oarsmen and nothing is protecting the rotten wood soon to be dried and burnt marsh. 10 dwarves, a couple dozen nice stone bridges, a few new Geo's Inns and forgot the old geezer Delecti...

 

 

You left out how the dwarves are eaten by undead when they try to do this and how the water mysteriously refuses to flow into the canal.

[Erol of Backford]

Not at all, there are lots of tribal warriors in 1600 who'd not be fighting Lunars to protect the dwarves. Maybe Runegate doesn't fall in 1602? Even better if the undead come out of the swamp a few kilometers distant to attack the project, they are mostly slow an much more vulnerable to attack and being burnt to ash/released then they are in the swamp. It just take gold to get the dwarves to do it and maybe even the PC's get the Sun Domers to help with the guarding of the canal construction... easy-peasy. You might even get some trolls to do night watch in a rare cooperative effort against undead...

[jajagappa]

1 hour ago, Erol of Backford said:

Maybe Runegate doesn't fall in 1602?

Have fun keeping the Bat away! 

[kalidor]

I think Nelat is better, choose three heroquesters  (one for the creek, one for the stream and another for the Engizi) and make the ceremony like this... (We are water! , we are the river! , we are the One! , we are the Borg! ...well forget the last one, wrong universe😝 but you get the meaning. Heroquest together to the deep waters and Nelat to be purified. And hope to survive, or not, sometimes sacrifice must be made for the greater good. 

Edited January 27, 2023 by kalidor

[Erol of Backford]

If the Bat is not properly fed, the High Priest killed or loses his concentration, or anyone not of the cult, the Bat Guard, or a direct descendent of the Moon rides it, the Bat will attempt to break control and run amok devouring friend and foe alike until it vanishes from the mundane plane on the next Godday.

 kill high priest...

[Erol of Backford]

Does anyone know if there is an abandoned dragonewt temple in the Upland Marsh and if so  where is it?

There are some dragonewt runes at the north end of the Marsh but none that I see in the Marsh proper.

There was a note in the Sartar Companion (Sartar Rumors p.85-88) that there was a powerful sky relic to be found there.

Any guess as to what this powerful sky relic might be and if its related to a specific Hero Quest therein?

[Joerg]

2 hours ago, Erol of Backford said:

Does anyone know if there is an abandoned dragonewt temple in the Upland Marsh and if so  where is it?

There are some dragonewt runes at the north end of the Marsh but none that I see in the Marsh proper.

This triplet of dragonewt runes symbolizes a node in the dragonewt road network where travelers can branch off to a different leg of the huge dragonewt rune-shaped network covering the Dragon Pass region. The southeastern branch should lead to the High Wyrm settlement near Boldhome, and might have a frogolith (dragonewt stela) on the Bar island or thereabouts.

 

[Erol of Backford]

1 hour ago, Joerg said:

This triplet of dragonewt runes symbolizes a node in the dragonewt road network where travelers can branch off to a different leg of the huge dragonewt rune-shaped network covering the Dragon Pass region.

So somewhere along the yellow might be an old swamp covered dragonewt temple...

I might use something like the old scenario Dead Reckoning for ideas as its on the edge of the Marsh along the river...

There one good picture of Dragon's Eye could be a good reference plus the old temples from Company of the Dragon that might also work.

So we have references, possible location now all we need is this old "Sky Relic" which we'll need to think on..