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    Canonfire :: View topic - Pinnacles of Azor'alq
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    Pinnacles of Azor'alq
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    Apprentice Greytalker

    Joined: Apr 20, 2008
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    Sun Aug 03, 2008 5:48 pm  
    Pinnacles of Azor'alq

    Where, other than "... 50 leagues off the mainland..." are the Pinnacles of Azor'alq located? I have not seen them listed on any map. Any info will be appreciated.
    Journeyman Greytalker

    Joined: Mar 12, 2008
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    Sun Aug 03, 2008 6:15 pm  

    I think the exact location is deliberately left vague so that you can put them where you need them.

    In general, they are off the coast of the Baklunish northwest - near Ekbir and such.
    Apprentice Greytalker

    Joined: Jul 15, 2003
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    From: Orktown, Manitoba, Canada

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    Sun Aug 03, 2008 10:33 pm  

    Perhaps they move? That would keep their location unknown....
    Master Greytalker

    Joined: Aug 17, 2004
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    From: Computer Desk

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    Mon Aug 04, 2008 11:33 am  

    As someone who have done some work in the area, personally I searched but the location was kept vague. I eagerly await your conclusions. If you reach a location concensus I will happily add them to the regional map.

    See sneak peek thread on this board.
    Journeyman Greytalker

    Joined: Jun 13, 2008
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    From: Houston Texas

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    Tue Aug 05, 2008 7:47 am  

    The only references to them that I know of are in Greyhawk Adventures and the original World of Greyhawk boxed set but I found an online post talking about there being some mention of them in the Treasures of Greyhawk supplement.

    The description was intentionally left vague and even hinted at the possibility of mobility, at one point indicating that the pinnacles would disappear below the waves at inexplicable moments, never leaving you knowing how much time you would have.

    The fact that there is no pattern to the submergence of the Island(?) indicates that it is not a simple matter of the ebbing of the tides as these have obvious, discernible patterns. AT one point of the descriptions it in GA it gave a recommended story idea in that the party be on a merchant vessel and the captain of the ship saying that he wanted to look into it but didn't want to stick around because of their tendency to disappear.

    I've thought about doing a game based around the Pinnacles for years but never really have done anything about it. I've considered using the disappearance of the island to be a magical effect based on the alignment of celestial bodies, an aspect of the ravenloft mists and putting the whole thing on the back of a zaratan (a giant turtle so big they sometimes are mistaken as tiny islands).
    Grandmaster Greytalker

    Joined: Nov 07, 2004
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    From: Mt. Smolderac

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    Tue Aug 05, 2008 8:52 pm  

    Yeah I get the impression it's supposed to be a Baklunish Avalon. They're out there but no one is really sure where.
    GreySage

    Joined: Aug 03, 2001
    Posts: 3310
    From: Michigan

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    Tue Aug 05, 2008 10:48 pm  

    They weren't mentioned in the 1983 World of Greyhawk boxed set. The quote from Greyhawk Adventures goes like:

    Quote:
    It would appear from accounts that the Pinnacles are no more than 50 leagues from the mainland, somewhere in the angle of the Dramidj between Ekbir and Zeif. They are less frequently found than one would think, but this is perhaps accounted for by their being away from the regular shipping lanes, and by the dense fogs peculiar to the Dramidj. Indeed, the Pinnacles are often concealed by banks of fog even when those waters are otherwise clear.


    Plus, the inhabitants have a tendency to kill intruders who might reveal their location. Sailors on the Dramidj will avoid banks of fog for fear they might be becalmed, and they view the Pinnacles as an ill omen.

    I think this is as specific as any source gets. I hadn't read anything that claimed the Pinnacles actually moved around or vanished, though that's another possible explanation for their allusiveness. Treasures of Greyhawk describes a Sword of Azor'alq, but not the Pinnacles themselves.
    Master Greytalker

    Joined: Aug 17, 2004
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    Wed Aug 06, 2008 10:05 am  

    So where would you place them?
    How far is a league anyway?
    Who or what are these mysterious inhabitants?
    If the pinnacles don't move perhaps they still can randomly submerge?

    All these questions and more will be answered next week on Greyhawk Trivia. Wink
    Journeyman Greytalker

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    Wed Aug 06, 2008 11:51 am  

    50 leagues, so 150 miles or so (give or take).

    Still probably best to leave it off, and just add a note on the map like: "suggested location of the Pinnacles of Azor'alq." That way we leave it open enough that it can be there or it cannot be there. Either way, its covered.
    Journeyman Greytalker

    Joined: Jun 13, 2008
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    From: Houston Texas

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    Wed Aug 06, 2008 1:19 pm  

    Even if it doesn't move you can still play with the idea of it being there one moment and gone the next. In the FTA boxed set it talks about a concept of "Fading Lands" an obvious tie in to Ravenloft. Hell, it could even be a part of Ravenloft. If they Flying Dutchman can travel in and out of it there is nothing saying that a mysteriously disappearing island can't either.

    Anyway, I don't remember all of the fading lands, just one which was formerly a mine. All the carts, shovels and pick axes were alive, even the gems there were alive, but the geckos and fungi and other thing that were supposed to be alive were as immobile and lifeless as the stone around them should have been.
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