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    Canonfire :: View topic - Lost City of the Suel
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    Lost City of the Suel
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    Grandmaster Greytalker

    Joined: Nov 07, 2004
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    From: Mt. Smolderac

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    Thu Jun 05, 2008 8:49 am  
    Lost City of the Suel

    I just read this and wondered if anyone else had noticed it or done anything -- history or adevnture-wise -- with it, although feel free to expand this into a general discussion on the Lost City -- a favorite topic! Smile

    In the Adventure Begins it says that the Lost City is said to have been a river port along the Jewell, southwest of Elredd, and that the descendants of its wicked inhabitants founded Badwall.
    Black Hand of Oblivion

    Joined: Feb 16, 2003
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    From: So. Cal

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    Thu Jun 05, 2008 10:45 am  

    You just noticed this?!! Shocked

    We talk about the Lost City of the Suel in the Suss Forest probably once a month at least on Greychat Thursday evenings. The topic is now almost guaranteed to pop up today if enough people see this thread.

    The Lost City is supposed to have been built upon an even older city site, as there are said to be weird, pre-Suel ruins there. I have pegged these ruins as the site of an ancient city of the sepentfolk in my campaign. By the time the Suel got there, the serpentfolk were long gone(or so it is thought). It is not known what caused the Suel's city on this site to fall into ruin. Dark things from the Suss? Invading humanoids? They brought about their own destruction? Something altogether more sinister? Some or all of those probably.

    The Lost City of the Suel is a nice, relatively untouched location that DMs are free to develop as they see fit.
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    Grandmaster Greytalker

    Joined: Nov 07, 2004
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    From: Mt. Smolderac

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    Thu Jun 05, 2008 5:16 pm  

    Naw man, I know about the Lost City. I had just never heard the relation to the founders of Badwall.

    I like your serpentfolk idea. I started writing an adventure set in the Lost City for a related cave/temple with the original inhabitants having been demonic troglodytes related to the trog culture mentioned in Scarlet Brotherhood. It was sort of an Indian Jones get there before the other guy does thing. I remember one chat we were talking about the Lost City in relation to the Dungeon adventure that was based on B4: The Lost City. Was that with you or Mort? Anyway we were discussing where to place it in GH and someone suggested changing it from a desert setting to forest and place it in the Suss. A Badwall connection could really bring that all together nicely.
    GreySage

    Joined: Aug 03, 2001
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    Thu Jun 05, 2008 6:19 pm  

    If the Lost City of the Suss is the Lost City from B4, the ancient reptilian civilization could have also been cultists of Zargon, which makes sense. B4 doesn't have any other canonical placement in Greyhawk, so why not? It's the most interesting "Lost City" ever presented in D&D, I think, though I'm sure there are countless others in issues of Dungeon and so on.

    Of course, that means that Badwall was populated by Cynidiceans, which might make Badwall a little more interesting. Possibly they weren't albino at the time.

    Chatdemon wrote a series of articles on Canonfire! adapting the deities of B4 into the Suel pantheon, here, here, here, and here.

    There's also an article on the Lost City of the Suloise on the Wizards.com website.

    It's almost tempting to use Myth Drannor as the model for the Lost City, twisting it from FR's fallen elven paradise to something more vile from the beginning.
    Apprentice Greytalker

    Joined: Feb 28, 2008
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    From: Charlotte, North Carolina

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    Fri Jun 06, 2008 8:24 am  

    Is the idea that the Lost City was built on the ruins of another city canon or just discussion a possible history? Either way it is an excellent idea for a potential mega-adventure.

    As a player, our group had thought about searching for the city, We just never got around to it. I may DM this someday. The idea of using an elven storyline to me is more in line with what I have in mind. I have actually always thought it would be interesting to have lost elven city ruins from the time before humans settled in the flanaess as an adventure hook. If I remember correctly before humanity (and others) arrived, the elves were spread out around the flanaess. This leaves the possibility of long lost treasures (as well as long lost dangers) just waiting to be discovered.
    Grandmaster Greytalker

    Joined: Nov 07, 2004
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    Fri Jun 06, 2008 8:38 am  

    Telemachus wrote:
    Is the idea that the Lost City was built on the ruins of another city canon or just discussion a possible history? Either way it is an excellent idea for a potential mega-adventure.


    Depends on if you think the LG Mysterious Places column that Rip gave the link to above is canon. I'd say yes. I don't think it ever got any prior coverage beyond that mentioned in the original WoGG.

    The elven city idea is an interesting approach although you'll need an explanation for what wiped out the original city.
    Apprentice Greytalker

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    Fri Jun 06, 2008 8:57 am  

    One idea that immediately comes to mind is that the Elven City was destroyed during a war between Drow and Elves.

    Another idea could be that the city was actually a Drow city at a time when they attempted to live on the surface.

    I am not an expert on Drow history, so I do not know if these ideas would fit or not; I will have to look into this further.
    Grandmaster Greytalker

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    Fri Jun 06, 2008 8:49 pm  

    Telemachus wrote:
    One idea that immediately comes to mind is that the Elven City was destroyed during a war between Drow and Elves.

    Another idea could be that the city was actually a Drow city at a time when they attempted to live on the surface.

    I am not an expert on Drow history, so I do not know if these ideas would fit or not; I will have to look into this further.


    Vhaeraun is a male drow god who concerns himself with reclaiming the surface world. He might be a focus in the history for your second example.

    The A series indicates some drow activity in the area by the presence of a drow as one of the Slave Lords and I think in Scourge of the Slave Lords there was some indication of direct contact with drow through the Underdark in the Pomarj.
    Apprentice Greytalker

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    Mon Jun 09, 2008 7:32 am  

    Quote:
    Vhaeraun is a male drow god who concerns himself with reclaiming the surface world. He might be a focus in the history for your second example.

    The A series indicates some drow activity in the area by the presence of a drow as one of the Slave Lords and I think in Scourge of the Slave Lords there was some indication of direct contact with drow through the Underdark in the Pomarj.


    Well, this indeed fits well together. Perhaps there is more of a reason for the invasion of the Southern Wild Coast than just conquest and blood. In this scenario, Drow may have ties to Turrosh Mak in a joint venture to find this lost city. I do not know how likely this is as Orcs hate elves and I do not think this is any less so with Drow, but Orcs also will yield to power of which the Drow have plenty.
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    Count Telemachus, Archmage of the Unicorn Conferderation
    Grandmaster Greytalker

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    Mon Jun 09, 2008 5:32 pm  

    Telemachus wrote:
    Quote:
    Vhaeraun is a male drow god who concerns himself with reclaiming the surface world. He might be a focus in the history for your second example.

    The A series indicates some drow activity in the area by the presence of a drow as one of the Slave Lords and I think in Scourge of the Slave Lords there was some indication of direct contact with drow through the Underdark in the Pomarj.


    Well, this indeed fits well together. Perhaps there is more of a reason for the invasion of the Southern Wild Coast than just conquest and blood. In this scenario, Drow may have ties to Turrosh Mak in a joint venture to find this lost city. I do not know how likely this is as Orcs hate elves and I do not think this is any less so with Drow, but Orcs also will yield to power of which the Drow have plenty.


    Don't forget the Scarlet Brotherhood either. Whatever is in the lost city they probably want it too. You could have forces from all three groups, plus the players competing with each other to get there first.

    I started writing an adventure once where the players were hired by a scribe in Hardby who had found an artifact (a pendant which turned out to be a key) of the lost city when he had noticed it around the neck of a young orc slave in his employer's household (I make orcs and goblins fairly common as slaves in the Wild Coast and Hardby IMC). He basically stole the slave, offering him his freedom in return for leading him to the lands where his tribe lived in the Suss, which was where the pendant came from. The scribe hires the players to facilitate this adventure though he doesn't tell them the backstory. They have to figure it out, which becomes easier as a group of mercenaries who are tracking the scribe so they can find out what he's up to and bring back the orc slave. The adventure was going to be getting the scribe and orc to the site of the lost city and exploring a temple in the ruins that was still fairly intact (Which they needed the pendant/key to get into). That's as far as I got. I figured I could fill the rest in with some Indiana Jones-inspired encounters. They would have ended up fighting the mercenaries who caught up with them inside the temple and when they emerge they find the scribe has been killed by the orc slave who has brought the surviving members of his tribe down on them, so if they get away, its by the skin of their teeth, hopefully losing the majority of the treasure in the process. I'm an evil DM !!! Wink
    Apprentice Greytalker

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    Tue Jun 10, 2008 12:26 pm  

    The Scarlet Brotherhood has ears everywhere...

    For that matter, the High or Grey Elves may have a stake in finding the remains of a Drow city. Perhaps long ago the Drow stole an ancient elven artifact and hid it within the city.

    It could be very difficult for the PCs to choose their friends for some of the Elves might believe retrieval of the artifact is vital at any cost.
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    Count Telemachus, Archmage of the Unicorn Conferderation
    Apprentice Greytalker

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    Thu Jun 19, 2008 7:45 am  

    Cebrion wrote:
    The Lost City is supposed to have been built upon an even older city site, as there are said to be weird, pre-Suel ruins there. I have pegged these ruins as the site of an ancient city of the sepentfolk in my campaign. By the time the Suel got there, the serpentfolk were long gone(or so it is thought). It is not known what caused the Suel's city on this site to fall into ruin. Dark things from the Suss? Invading humanoids? They brought about their own destruction? Something altogether more sinister? Some or all of those probably.


    That's exactly the way I see it. I think the serpentfolk tie-in works best of all, and provides just the sort of sinister/true-evil tie-in that works best.

    I would like to say though, as regards the possible lpan of having the Lost City as an elven city ~ from Suloise history there were connections between the Suel people and the Grey Elves. So why not have a gradual integration of the Suloise into the elven city - perhaps a site of great (unspecified atm) power - which the Suel covet, and ultimately overthrow their elven allies to garner it for themselves...only to be overcome, ultimately, by said power.

    Just a thought. Wink
    Apprentice Greytalker

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    Thu Jun 19, 2008 8:11 am  

    This is what I like most about Greyhawk. So many valid histories can be used to bring the world to life. No other campaign setting is as versatile to the design of the DM.
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    Count Telemachus, Archmage of the Unicorn Conferderation
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    Wed Jul 02, 2008 5:56 am  

    I've been building toward my PCs finding the Lost City of the Suel, but realy didn't have much in mind yet for when they find it. The only idea I thought I might build around was that the City housed a Suel Lich. I think someone here made a 3E conversion, but I will probably use the one that was in Dragon magazine a while back.

    I'll probably swipe some of the ideas from this thread, but I thought I'd ask if anyone has any other suggestions.
    GreySage

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    Wed Jul 02, 2008 7:49 am  

    I thought some of the sites from Vor Kragal would be good for the Lost City.
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