|
Post by zipp on May 5, 2008 19:06:48 GMT -5
So I'm starting a gamebook trilogy set in Southern Magnamund. Now, the series that really dealt with Southern Magnamund were Grey Star and the New Order. I didn't read any of those, so I need some clue ins as to what the state of Southern Magnamund is after the LW series and Grey Star series ends.
Particularly important is politics and major changes in geography or political holdings.
|
|
|
Post by Maerin on May 5, 2008 19:27:35 GMT -5
Well, a couple things to keep in mind:
1. The Grey Star series covers only a small area (both geographically and culturally) at the very south end of Southern Magnamund. A few New Order books are going to paint more widespread pictures of the continent (I realize you have neither; I am just trying to focus your thoughts/directions/goals so far as what sources you need versus what you don't need), as well as be set "after the LW series and the Grey Star Series ends".
2. The Grey Star series spans a relatively small sliver of time compared to even the span of Lone Wolf's adventures (roughly LW books 1 to 6, depending on how one interprets the time frames described in the Grey Star series).
3. It would be helpful to know where in Southern Magnamund your trilogy will be set. There are a lot of different geographies and cultures, even if one discounts progressive history. In many respects, the southern continent is even more diverse, culturally, geographically, and historically, than the northern continent. At a minimum, one might be able to narrow the number of sources one recommends you consult; or else make a better summary of the information you might be looking for.
|
|
|
Post by zipp on May 5, 2008 19:49:38 GMT -5
Setting:
Ilion Halia Lunarlia Siyen Rezovia Naaros Bhanar Chai Lissan Andui Karnali Sadi Desert Korli Forlu Kaum
It's a fairly expansive trilogy
I have the RPG, and it has nice back histories, I just need to know if anything major changes here, since it's set in MS 4500 or something.
Shadakine info is very helpful, since Shadaki seems to control most everything in the corner of southern magnamund.
|
|
|
Post by Maerin on May 5, 2008 20:00:04 GMT -5
*chuckles* Gads, expansive is right. Are you sure you actually want to be that expansive?
The RPG is set in MS5000, 50 years before the start of both the Lone Wolf and Grey Star series. Some information in it, as a consequence, is a bit more problematic then others. A more effective gazetteer-type starting point might be combining Magnamund Companion with the old Lone Wolf club newsletters (which had more detailed gazetteer text for nations not written up in Magnamund Companion).
Before diving too much further, it would still be useful to know what time your trilogy is set in. There is a couple decade's worth of history between the end of the Grey Star series and the end of the Lone Wolf series, a couple decades with a significant amount of cultural and societal dynamic change for certain nations like Lissan, Andui, Karnali and the nations immediately around them. Case in point, at the end of the Grey Star series, the Shadakine go from controlling large swaths of southern magnamund to controlling only a relatively small part of it.
|
|
|
Post by zipp on May 5, 2008 20:08:27 GMT -5
It might seem really ambitious, but most of those places are visited briefly or in passing, or are simply involved, plot wise. Also, a good number of the Shadakine cities are very close together, making it less expansive in practice.
I want these to be set pretty much immediately after the New Order books, but if they change things too much, I may have it set immediately after or during book 20 of LW instead.
|
|
|
Post by Maerin on May 5, 2008 21:25:42 GMT -5
Kinda six-of-one-half, half-a-dozen of the other between Book 20 and, say Book 28. The only substantial changes during that time documented by the New Order books occurred in Siyen (a new king) and in Bhanar and Chai, with the invasion of the latter by the former, which lead to the death (for real?) of Sejanoz.
Give me a day or so and I'll see if I can pull together at least some public-domain information to start you off. If you are only visiting each of those areas very briefly, there is likely only a very small probability of you coming up with anything strongly contradictory in your own gamebook manuscripts.
What IS worth noting about Southern Magnamund is how little is really known by any of us as yet. Putting aside fan creations and information/speculation about the forthcoming NO gamebooks and novels, there are a lot more gaps than there is information, and you can drive a large truck through most of those gaps.
|
|
|
Post by Maerin on May 5, 2008 21:33:29 GMT -5
For the sake of my not repeating information you already have, do you have the Magnamund Companion and the various "supplemental" pieces of information to the MC that were in the old Lone Wolf Club Newsletters?
|
|
|
Post by Aguila Saber on May 5, 2008 23:28:32 GMT -5
Setting: Ilion Halia Lunarlia Siyen Rezovia Naaros Bhanar Chai Lissan Andui Karnali Sadi Desert Korli Forlu Kaum It's a fairly expansive trilogy I have the RPG, and it has nice back histories, I just need to know if anything major changes here, since it's set in MS 4500 or something. Shadakine info is very helpful, since Shadaki seems to control most everything in the corner of southern magnamund. Actually, Shadaki doesn't control the southern south Magnamund Nations at this time. The datings for incursions are about 100 years after. I believe Lara was one of the first nations and that incursion is dated MS 4660. Forlu was captured during the War of the Winds in MS 4663. Lissan is ruled by the Masbate. What started the successful part of the expansion is the alliance between the Sadi Desert Warriors and the Shadakines (Shasarak) and that union is probably dated to somewhere around MS 4000 or so. Shasarak does however start to conquer within the current borders of Shadaki taking the city-states by use of this army. The building of the city Shadaki as a new capital makrks the end of this area and is likely dated around MS 4400-4600 or thereabouts so it is actually unclear if it is the captial and built ready in MS 4500. Jazer might still be the capital at this point. Piecing some information together about Shasarak's where abouts. Year MS 3000. Shianti is exiled to Lorn. Shasarak remains in Southern Magnamund. Shasarak's first nation is Taklakot. Ultimately he causes this nation to be destroyed. Shasark allies with the Sadi desert and starts conquering the Shadaki nations, around MS 4000. Shasarak builds the city of Shadaki, and the starts the preparation for the War of the Winds in MS 4663. War of the Winds is the name of the war where most of the southern nations are taken. Before this War most of the nations you listed are Freelands. The taking of the southern nations are completed quite late, and there are indications of three events for when it is more or less ready. - Battle of Tentarium when Shasarak's troops are beaten by the Vassagonian army. - Shasarak is crowned overlord, MS 5036. At this time Shasarak is trying to expand west twoards Lissan, but not very successfuly which causes the opening of the portals from where the Demons emerged in MS 5054. According to Grey Star #1 back story, Shasarak is crowned overlord of the Shadakine Empire at the time Grey Star is stranded on the Isle of Lorn, which places this event around MS 5036.
|
|
|
Post by Maerin on May 5, 2008 23:55:26 GMT -5
Shasarak builds the city of Shadaki, and the starts the preparation for the War of the Winds in MS 4663. War of the Winds is the name of the war where most of the southern nations are taken. Before this War most of the nations you listed are Freelands. Depends on how you define "Freelands" in this case. If you mean, not ruled by evil monsters, sure. But there is at least some circumstantial evidence to suggest that not all such previous rulers may have been lily-white and pure nor that Shasarak's initial conquest was completely contested. Incidently Aguila Saber is correct, and I am sorry if I didn't make that clear above. The era of the Shadakine Empire ended a generation prior to the timeframe you are wanting to set your gamebook manuscripts. So extrapolation is going to need to be made for all the former Shadakine Empire areas for how they may have changed a generation later (though there are some references to various bits of the Shadakine Empire in the NO books, i.e. Shadakai, the Lissan Plains, the port of Suhn, etc., that can be summarized for you). At this time Shasarak is trying to expand west twoards Lissan, but not very successfuly which causes the opening of the portals from where the Demons emerged in MS 5054. MS 5044, though I assume that was just a typo. According to Grey Star #1 back story, Shasarak is crowned overlord of the Shadakine Empire at the time Grey Star is stranded on the Isle of Lorn, which places this event around MS 5036. Which begs an interesting question, I guess, though perhaps one too off topic for Zipp's purposes. Why did it take so long to consolidate the Shadakine Empire if Shasarak started his conquest over 370 years in the past? Geography does not seem to be a challenge, either from the standpoint of topography nor distance. The nation states conquered to make up the Shadakine Empire (aside from Shadaki and not counting the Lissan Plains) did not appear significantly powerful. There is the semi-weird and not very detailed references to attacking Vassagonia mixed into the mess too, as I recall, though perhaps that may be its own mystery too.
|
|
|
Post by zipp on May 6, 2008 1:07:38 GMT -5
Feel free to speculate openly in this thread. I'm using it for gathering theories and incidental observations as well as hard facts.
I do have the MC, I do not have the newsletters, though I know they are online at PA.
|
|
|
Post by Beowuuf on May 6, 2008 2:11:09 GMT -5
actually the newletter info maerin was talking about should be at the end of the PA's copy of the Magnamund Companion
|
|
|
Post by Ghost Bear on May 7, 2008 6:14:19 GMT -5
I recommend reading Grey Star. If you're writing books set in Southern Magnamund, then it seems foolish not to. Same goes for as many New Order books as you can find.
-GB
|
|
|
Post by zipp on May 8, 2008 15:33:04 GMT -5
I recommend reading Grey Star. If you're writing books set in Southern Magnamund, then it seems foolish not to. Same goes for as many New Order books as you can find. -GB Well, that's sort've what I'm asking for help on. Grey Star I think I can get off PA, but the NO's are sort've not accesible. I by chance happen to have book 21, but... yeah. I don't know if you even get to Southern Magnamund in that one, or if it's all travel.
|
|
|
Post by Doomy on May 8, 2008 15:50:26 GMT -5
Preliminary, plain texts of the New Order books are hosted on the Inner Sanctum section of PA's site (check the Assignments pages), so in theory you could read them there. But I wouldn't recommend it.
|
|
|
Post by Al on May 9, 2008 1:33:25 GMT -5
How many books are you planning on writing? Given the outline of the adventure goes everywhere, the detail required would be minimum. I would suggest not worrying about it, go with what is in the online sourcebooks, and only when you encounter a real need then worry about it.
Just a thought.
|
|