SW 4th Era Project: “Shuffling the Deck”

As I continue to fill in the foundation of my 4th Age of Shadow World, I’m debating a balance between retaining core elements of Shadow World or “upsetting the apple cart” and making some broader changes to the setting. As a long term SW user I’m of two minds but ultimately shaking things up seems the proper choice; otherwise, why not just continue to play in the established 3rd Era?

Coastlines & Topography. I’m going to push Matt for some feedback on this, but I’m going to assume a modest 50′ rise in oceans level due to ice melt from the “Battle of the Northern Eye”. Obviously that will impact some major cities, but leave several key locations untouched: Haalkitaine and Ardania specifically come to mind..

Pantheons. My thoughts on this will become more apparent when I upload by Shadow World: Book of Essaence, but I see some disruptions to the established Gods. A few Gods of Charon might rejoin their brethren on Orhan, while a few others may be banished or flee to live on Kulthea; powerful still but greatly reduced. The Masters of Emer may re-assert themselves. Whether Nynaku escaped or was re-imprisoned (Legends of the Shadow World adventure), the energy pulse at the northern pole cracked his prison shells. He flees into hiding, but is a force now on the planet.

Rise of the Earthwardens. There is a great storyline here. Assuming the Loremasters have been culled a bit, the return of a few Earthwardens could be a great hook. Plus the return of Arcane/Primal Essaence magic…

Eidolon. I’m with Hurin and I think the floating city needs to come down! It’s a high profile target and a major disruption to the Essaence Flows could capsize it with a secondary attack of opportunity by the Silver Dragon. The ruined city could have been plundered but lying mostly intact a few miles from Sel-kai.

Rule of the Dragonlords. The 4th Era could start with the dominance of the Dragonlords. Ulya reasserts herself in the West and directly confronts the Alliance. The Silver Dragon takes control of Northern Emer (he has invaded before), the Red Dragon pushes down into Tanara and north Rhakaan.

The Unlife. I’m torn here again. I could see the Lords of Orhan, out of fear and desperation throttling the dimensional rift even further to block the Unlife from entering this reality. That could also weaken the Essaence, the flows, magical recharge rates, weaken magical effects etc. Perhaps the 4th Era is not the story of the Unlife, but an age of less magic to mirror the “Age of Men” in ME?

The Secrets. With the Secret Circle undone, these would be amazing “mega dungeons” for the players. Now vacant, or mostly so, filled with traps, knowledge and artifacts. More akin to the “Haunt of the Necromancer”, perhaps they are still occupied by one of the lesser circle or an Adherant?

Nexus & the Navigators. Imagine the Flows are completely disrupted or rerouted. Mapped jump points, Obelisks and safe routes are now all in question. Nexus itself is no longer a convergence point with major Flows now terminated. Travel is still incredibly risky, but the Navigators are also less effective. That’s also interesting to me.

The Loremasters. The Third Era ended with great sacrifice. Many of the elder Loremasters were killed to stabilize the Northern Eye or in direct confrontation with Shrek, the Shadowstone etc. Karilon was infiltrated and heavily damaged, and it’s protective magics stripped away.

The Ash Lairs. Like the Wars of Dominion, the denizens of the underearth swarmed up and invaded the surface at the darkest moment. Perhaps they were fleeing for safety themselves (major earthquakes and gate volatility). Either way, there were major battles and engagements on most continents.

Spacemaster Angle. The wild card could be the Dia Khovaria. Already position with agents on Kulthea, a weakened Essaence field could allow easier access to Kulthea and better technological reliabillity.

Anyway, just a few thoughts as a I build a concept framework for a 4th Era book. I still think this is a great path forward for ICE and Shadow World. It protects Terry’s work, but it creates a newish setting for RMU using the strong foundation of Shadow World material.