[3.5] MODULE: The Metaphysical Revolution (Levels 1-3)

[Endarire]

http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/The%20Metaphysical%20Revolution%20Poster%202%208%2 012%20%28JPG%29.JPG

http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/GM%20Screen%20Icon.PNG (http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/The%20Metaphysical%20Revolution%20for%20D%26D%203. 5%20%20%28Level%201-3%20Module%29%20CORE%20MATERIALS.rar) Download The Metaphysical Revolution - GM's Edition (http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/The%20Metaphysical%20Revolution%20for%20D%26D%203. 5%20%20%28Level%201-3%20Module%29%20CORE%20MATERIALS.rar) http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/GM%20Screen%20Icon.PNG (http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/The%20Metaphysical%20Revolution%20for%20D%26D%203. 5%20%20%28Level%201-3%20Module%29%20CORE%20MATERIALS.rar)

http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/PC%20Character%20Sheet%20Icon.PNG (http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/The%20Metaphysical%20Revolution%20for%20D%26D%203. 5%20%28Material%20for%20Players%20and%20PCs%29.rar ) Download The Metaphysical Revolution - Player Materials (http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/The%20Metaphysical%20Revolution%20for%20D%26D%203. 5%20%28Material%20for%20Players%20and%20PCs%29.rar ) http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/PC%20Character%20Sheet%20Icon.PNG (http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/The%20Metaphysical%20Revolution%20for%20D%26D%203. 5%20%28Material%20for%20Players%20and%20PCs%29.rar )

http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/Eighth%20Note%20Icon.PNG (http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/The%20Metaphysical%20Revolution%20Soundtrack.rar) Download The Metaphysical Revolution Soundtrack (http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/The%20Metaphysical%20Revolution%20Soundtrack.rar) http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/Eighth%20Note%20Icon.PNG (http://antioch.snow-fall.com/files/members/Endarire/ToP/The%20Metaphysical%20Revolution%20Soundtrack.rar)
Warning: Soundtrack file names contain spoilers!

[Endarire]

The Campaign Setting – A Primer on the World of Yevir
The world of Yevir isn’t your standard fantasy world. Standard fantasy would start the group in or near a tavern from the employ of a mysterious stranger or a royal official or a dying creature. This town or tavern would be in or near a forest. A level 1 mission would most likely involve slaying (or avoiding) rats, bandits/raiders, skeletons, zombies, goblinoids, or/and kobolds. In my humble opinion: Yawn.

Instead, the world of Yevir focuses on things not often seen in a fantasy setting. This module is called The Metaphysical Revolution for good reason. Among other things, Yevir is meant to showcase what would happen if Earth’s Industrial Revolution happened with magic and psionics instead of scientific technology. Also, the setting is intended to change due to people, y’know, doing stuff. (Player characters, especially.)

New magic is researched. New item creation methods are discovered. No Medieval Stasis (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MedievalStasis), here!

In Yevir, 50 years is a long time because, as real-world humans, we typically don’t care about what happened more than 50 years ago. Also, things change rapidly in the setting. By the time the group is level 10, space travel isn’t out of the question. (Interplanar travel is still available, of course.)

The world of Yevir is much like our own world. Morality isn’t so absolute. There is plenty of grey. As such, this world is filled with difficult decisions and people who need to make them.


Yevir Facts and History You Need to Know to Play This Module
NPCs, Levels, and Power
When this campaign starts, no one in the world is above level 5. A level 1 person is a typical adult. A level 2 person is significantly experienced or significantly trained in his field. A level 3 person is known as an expert in his field, and possibly an innovator. Many people reach level 2 or 3 within 50 years just by staying around town.

A level 4 person is quite remarkable. He has some training or innate talent that makes him a leader in his field. Typically, a level 4 person is an innovator in his field.

A level 5 person is an exemplar of this generation. He likely created or discovered an extremely effective or powerful technique in his field. Innovation is almost a certainty here. People will probably write songs and stories about him in the days to come if they haven’t already.

There still are very powerful creatures out there, like dragons, who are powerful because they were born that way. Some have class levels, but not more than 5 when this scenario begins.

‘Tech’ (spells and psionic powers) of level 3 and below are sold by the trade houses in varying frequencies. There is a high demand for tech level 3 items due to their power, and so few people are able to make them. Even though tech level 4 and 5 items are possible via experimental methods (and are also extremely expensive), agreements are in place so these items are never sold on the open market.

The War
This module takes place on the Eastern Continent. About a decade ago, The War annihilated nearly all life on the Western Continent. Humans, Elves, and Dwarves are mostly to blame. The War assumedly lasted only 1 day, but its impact is still felt today.

The Orc majority rules cities in the Eastern Continent. Racism against Humans, Elves, and Dwarves (and those who look like them) is rampant and seen as necessary to prevent further annihilation.

Trade Houses and Society
Various trade houses are effectively the governments of the civilized parts of the Eastern Continent. House Felsad, the largest trade house, specializes in divine magic. (House Felsad also employed the party on this adventure.) House Sardonic specializes in psionics. House Tyndorf specializes in arcane magic. Other, fledgeling trade houses exist but don’t matter much right now.

Trade houses keep life pretty rosy for the civilized folk. Due to magic, there is plenty of food and water for everyone, given freely to all. (Go, go, create food and water and plant growth traps!)

Endure elements means no one is especially hot nor cold. See invisibility on everyone prevents those pesky, sneaky casters from merely magicking their way into restricted areas. Continual flame lampposts provide light at all hours and discourage sneaking around in public.

This society sounds more like Star Trek than medieval Europe. So what do people do all day when they need not worry about food, water, nor shelter?

Adventure and politics.

In civilized areas, politics are a way of life. Those with power are ever trying to gain more power. High-ranking officials of trade houses want to keep their own secrets secure while stealing the secrets of their rivals. Lower-ranking officials want to keep their bosses happy.

When members of trade houses aren’t engaging in corporate espionage, they sell things to the adventure-based economy. Spells, powers, weapons, armor, knowledge, prestige. These are the tools of the typical adventurer.

And why do people adventure?

First, to escape the politics. Second, because gaining some lost object or piece of information could prove extremely lucrative to the trade houses. Third, because adventurers who survive tend to improve themselves in all regards much faster than those who just stay around town.

The Meta
The Meta are a race of sentient Constructs who were granted an official homeland called Amarice on the Eastern Continent. The Meta are small in number (about 100 worldwide at last count) and unable to reproduce, but they are considered the world’s best artisans, especially for magic and psionic items. Meta are protected by an international treaty. Killing a Meta, even accidentally, calls for the complete destruction of that person, his family, and his nation. So far, this hasn’t happened. Even impersonating or harming a Meta call for death of the criminal.

Despite all these protections (or perhaps because of them), the Meta are glorified slaves. In exchange for their protection, they’re expected to produce whatever items their current client demands, for the appropriate price, of course.

Amarice, as an official homeland, wasn’t the first Meta homeland. The first Amarice was abandoned within the past 2 decades due to a low population. It became too big to keep fortified. When the old Amarice was abandoned, most Meta left to explore the world, some promising to return.

The creator of the Meta, the Kobold golemsmith Odium, is assumedly dead. It is believed his rivals stole his soul and placed it where none could find it.

Meta as Player Characters
When this scenario starts, GMs should be careful about allowing Meta as player characters. Amarice would want to know why one of their precious kindred has returned. Initially, Meta characters are reserved for wonderful storytellers and people who will cooperate with the GM in making an even better story.

[Starbuck_II]

Similar to Pathfinder you have a unifying mechanic for maneuvers like disarm, grapple, etc. (TM/TD). Pathfiner calls it CMA/CMD.

Half orcs are pretty cool in it.
Metas are your version of Warforged?

Interesting, had I more time I would critique better/more.

[Endarire]

Because of my reliance on Tome of Battle, I renamed CMB and CMD. The terms "CMB" and "CMD" are easy to mistake if you just hear them in passing, and my TM/TD system uses different numbers than CMB/D.

[Endarire]

Fixed the GM edition link.

Uploading PDF versions of the DOCs now. (The PDFs are in the RARs.)

[Dead_Jester]

The GM edition link still appears to be broken (getting a File not Found error on the hosting website).

[Endarire]

The GM edition link was fixed again.

[Flickerdart]

Why are there five different typefaces on the cover? I mean, I could see, like, two (the main title typeface is all right as far as display types go, and then pick any of the text faces and stick to it). And then for some reason they are all oblique, except two of them were already italic before they were oblique, so you get this really strange sort of thing that just baffles me. And then for some reason you've got "taste of power" tracked out and compressed in addition to the faux italics for some reason. For some reason. Some reason.

I would not remark upon this if not for the fact that the cover image takes up more space than your actual post. There isn't any introduction about the module or anything. It's just hey look a thread, bam look at this cover thing, please download our module. This is the public face of your work. It didn't have to be, but you have made it so. I am going to hazard a guess that your module contains words inside of it. Those words are probably really good words, as far as words go. You are proud, I would imagine, of those words. Why do you not share some of these words?

Back to the typography. I'm reasonably certain that the ultra-bold is Gill Sans, except its shape has been irredeemably broken by the pattern. If you're going to force such a pattern onto a type, you might as well pick something that isn't as wacky as Gill Sans. Eurostile Extended is good. But I digress, because nobody except for me cares what these are called. I had a point, so I'll get back to it, shall I?

The typeface (its wackiness somewhat obscured by the pattern) combined with the title is likely supposed to be the foremost hierarchical element. It isn't, because you can't read it properly, but it's supposed to be. Because it is the title. What do we know about the module so far? That it is about a revolution, which is metaphysical. But circuits are neither of those things, so we are lost, and must move on.

When we do so, it is inevitably to the lightning (Clouds, Difference Clouds, Gradient Map, by the way - it's generally a bad idea to use such easily identifiable effects) that obscures the readability of the title. This actually begins to tell us things. Namely, two things. One, that it was a dark and stormy night. Two, that the metaphysical revolution is a bad thing. So I guess the PCs have to stop it? This lightning has a bit of a thing going on with the lightning above it (around "Taste of Power") but the second lightning is different lightning. Alone, that second motif might have actually worked (with a better typeface - what is that, Arial? Arial has a real italic, not a faux one, and also sucks), especially without the Outer Glow. This continues to reinforce the negativity of said revolution. At this point, the viewer knows two things about the revolution, aside from its metaphysicality: that it involves people who abuse lightning-based powers, and also for some reason robots. Kind of a Victor von Frankenstein meets the Borg deal.

Now, the viewer's attention must wander back down, dragging itself through the title to land on a script type that's also been rendered oblique. Why a script? If this is a lightning-based roboworld, then why not stick with the sans-serifs? Anyway, this is asking the viewer if they want to reinvent the world. This is probably related to the metaphysical revolution. So I guess the PCs will be the ones sending out Frankenborgs to assimilate the populace. Okay, cool I guess. In case the viewer had any doubts about said Frankenborg, the circuit board pattern comes back.

So now, secure in their knowledge that they are going to go Robocop on Emperor Palpatine's bony behind, the viewer keeps going, running into another typeface. A module! Well, this is a good thing to know. In D&D, of all things! Well, I suppose the ol' d20 system can be stretched to accommodate Murphy and Sidious duking it out. Levels 1-3? How is this a taste of power? This is the power level of four to eight house cats. The rest of the cover screams "totally awesome guys in shades lightning-bolting worlds in half" and then there's this. To its credit, this is the most "futuristic" type on the page (Impact? Impact sucks) with the least futuristic content (D&D 3.5, piddling low levels).

Then there are names at the bottom, again in an italic that was then obliqued. It has far too much weight just by being white in a sea of black, but does nothing else terribly offensive.

So, after looking at this cover, I have no idea what's going on. I haven't been hooked, only rendered mildly confused, and no solution to my confusion presents itself immediately. No, instead I have to download a RAR, then unRAR it, and then maybe words will come out at me that will make sense of what is going on. But even the links area is muddled, with icons of different sizes that don't actually serve any purpose because hey, the text is right next to them, and is also huge. And then you repeat the title of the module three times in case we forgot it.

In effect, the cover tries everything but accomplishes nothing. You don't need it to advertise your presence for you (in fact, it cannot do that, because anyone coming here clicked a text link already). What you need in this space is to explain, to slightly interested parties, what is going on - ideally, to make them more interested. What you have instead is, well, the opposite of that. I'm sure that the module is actually very good. But your strategy to deliver it before my eyeballs, so that I may marvel at its excellence, is very much misguided.

Naturally, I would like to propose a solution. One, delete the cover. The forum is not a book. The module might be formatted as a book, but that is the module and not the thread. The thread is a different medium, and requires a different approach. In this case, since it's viewed through a landscape-oriented monitor, the solution is to make a title graphic the same orientation. Then remove the names (you are not Keith Baker and are not going to be hooking anybody with them). Also remove the everything else. Leave two things: the title, and the tagline. Both with the same typeface. No italics, no obliques. In fact, you are banned from anything but Romans forevermore. Don't bother with a background. Now that you have a compact banner that doesn't waste space, explain what you are on about using text. Done? Good. Three download links - GM Materials, PC Materials, Soundtrack. Don't need the name of the module in there again, don't need icons. If you absolutely must have the icons, do not have two of them. Don't need to say Download, it's obvious from the context.

It's really nice that you're trying to format the adventure like an actual publication. It just doesn't really work.

[chrisrawr]

-sexy things-

Will... Will you have my babies?

[Endarire]

Flickerdart: Thanks for the advice. Posting this stuff here was meant to garner comments for improvement. You're the first person to comment on this module or its appearance to any great degree, not counting, "Fix the links!"

[Endarire]

I updated the second post with helpful world info.

What else do y'all want to know in promotional post?

[Endarire]

Updated the poster. Now, it's more legible and professional-looking!

[Endarire]

March 28, 2012
I updated the module with minor fixes. The section headers should all have their corresponding numbers now, and Trinden's character sheet is now correct.

[Djinn_in_Tonic]

I'll admit...I checked this out, but I can't read through it entirely. The formatting and color choices aren't particularly strong, and I found the file difficult to read. I have similar comments on the cover image, but I'll avoid giving you layout criticism in specifics unless you actually want that sort of comment (if you do, let me know!).


On to the module itself. Firstly, it's really long...I can't find the time to critique it specifically for plot and so forth. It would take to long. That said, I'm really concerned that the plot only has 8 major points of flow...and that the module is over 200 pages long to cover those 8 points. Not good. Major flag there.

I also dislike the game-like presentation. I don't like getting dialog charts to control everything. It feels like Dragon Age: The Pen and Paper RPG rather than an adventure module...everything is to controlled, to pre-determined. Can't say I'd play such a thing, nor would I run it. I'd much rather have a single page of fleshed out NPC information, and then make my OWN choices for how that NPC interacts based on what the party does, not have the dialog and choices presented to me in such a cold and mechanical fashion.

Haven't read enough to comment on the plot yet.