ksbsnowowl
2016-09-05, 05:00 PM
My party of players will soon be traveling to the Infernal Battlefield of Acheron. The adventure will remain on the first layer of the plane, which is composed of iron cubes floating in an airy void.
First:
One of my players has a few Stone Dragon maneuvers, specifically Mountain Hammer. Stone Dragon maneuvers have an odd requirement:
Stone Dragon’s defensive abilities focus on tapping into the enduring power of stone to turn aside attacks.
...
Unlike with other disciplines, adepts of this school rely on an external force — the power of the earth and stone—to help power their maneuvers. As a result, Stone Dragon maneuvers can be initiated only if you are in contact with the ground.
If a PC is standing on a iron cube of Acheron, can they initiate Stone Dragon maneuvers?
What about if they are standing in an iron castle built on one of Acheron's iron cubes?
In the process of reading up on Acheron, I delved into some 2e Planescape books to gain extra info. I found this tidbit, which is swaying me toward not allowing Stone Dragon maneuvers to work on Acheron:
With the right keys, elemental magic works well on Acheron, especially the magics of fire and water. Earth magics have absolutely no effect on the iron cubes of the plane. ...
Thoughts?
The next pair of questions I have would normally be posed to afroakuma, but his planar question thread is locked down, and he hasn't been active in months.
Second:
I read constantly (in 3e Manual of the Planes, 2e Planescape material) that when the clashing cubes of Acheron collide, it seems that the cubes collide flat-face to flat-face, destroying EVERYTHING on the overlapping flat faces of the cubes. There is one indication of such in the 3.0 Manual of the Planes (quoted below), but there are many more inferences to it in the 2e Planescape material as well. Still, it is never stated flat out, as I just did in this paragraph. (Though see the quote about Clangor and Nishrek, which also alludes to it).
The cubes that make up each of the four layers of Acheron are pitted and scarred with cracks and dents from their many collisions and craters from their many battles. On the orderly plane of Acheron, the cubes always rust or fracture along straight lines and at right angles.
...
The cubes vary [in size]. The smallest cubes are usually the oldest, having been reduced to their present size by eons of collisions.
...
Travelers in Avalas and Thuldanin must be wary of collisions between the cubes, because everything between the two cubes at impact is crushed into nothingness. Cubes bound for collision are visible a day or two in advance of impact, providing enough warning for evacuation.
Are collisions between cubes only ever face-to-face? And as such, any craters would be square and flat-bottomed?
Or can a corner collide with a cube-face, creating a triangular crater with three sloping crater-faces leading down to an inverted "point" at the bottom of the crater?
Third:
The 3.0 MotP has some entries about Clangor and Nishrek, housing the ever-warring goblin and orc armies, as well as the goblin deity Maglubiyet, and the Orc pantheon, including Gruumsh. It also has this side-bar, discussing how (in 2e) the two realms were opposite faces of the same cube, but are no longer:
The realms of Clangor and Nishrek were once a single cube, but the opposing deities of each realm finally managed to separate their realms into two wholly separate cubes. Though they are separated, enmity between the goblins of Clangor and the orcs of Nishrek is still great. Though the rival deities can prevent an entire cube face from being crushed by an opposing cube sent hurling through the void, that doesn’t stop either side from trying. Most battles are now fought when one side manages to land an invasion force on an opposing cube.
Combining this information with that from the earlier quotes, discussing the cubes always fracturing in straight lines at right angles, and seemingly as perfect cubes* (as it mentions the smallest cubes are the oldest, having been fractured many times over the eons), how can a formerly-single cube have fractured into two cubes? It could have fractured into two "flattened" "cubes" (basically 3-dimentional "rectangles"), but that seems to conflict with the fact that, at least in the first layer of Acheron, all the "cubes" actually ARE cubes* (get to the third layer of Acheron, and other shapes exist in number). Thus, when a large cube fractures, it must fracture into 8 smaller cubes (or smaller - think Rubix Cube breaking apart).
So, how would you rectify this information? Formerly a single cube, but now two "cubes?"
There are two possible answers. The two realms of Clangor and Nishrek were not actually on opposing faces, but were on opposing corners, and when the cube was divided, it became 8 smaller cubes, with Clangor inhabiting one of the 8, and Nishrek another of the 8. The other six sections have floated off to wherever else in the plane.
The other option is that the two realms really were on opposite faces, and when the cube broke, each deity/race took control of up to 4 of them. I envision this as the goblins holding 4 cubes, which are tethered together, in a loose arrangement, almost like ice cubes oriented but separated in an ice tray, with chains and bridges connecting them, and preventing them from drifting apart. Almost like tethering four rafts or innertubes together for a lazy float trip
Thoughts?
*
* Geometric shapes other than cubes exist, though they are rare (except on Tintibulus, the third layer).
Lastly, the portal the PC's are expected to use to arrive in Acheron is supposed to deposit them on the "Battle Cube." Reading through 2e material, I see that this was the name of the cube which contained Clangor and Nishrek. Also, any portals on that cube are supposed to be "heavily guarded."
Which force should be lucky enough to now control the portal, the goblins, or the orcs?
And how "heavily guarded" should it be when my 14th level PC's pop through from Rigus?
First:
One of my players has a few Stone Dragon maneuvers, specifically Mountain Hammer. Stone Dragon maneuvers have an odd requirement:
Stone Dragon’s defensive abilities focus on tapping into the enduring power of stone to turn aside attacks.
...
Unlike with other disciplines, adepts of this school rely on an external force — the power of the earth and stone—to help power their maneuvers. As a result, Stone Dragon maneuvers can be initiated only if you are in contact with the ground.
If a PC is standing on a iron cube of Acheron, can they initiate Stone Dragon maneuvers?
What about if they are standing in an iron castle built on one of Acheron's iron cubes?
In the process of reading up on Acheron, I delved into some 2e Planescape books to gain extra info. I found this tidbit, which is swaying me toward not allowing Stone Dragon maneuvers to work on Acheron:
With the right keys, elemental magic works well on Acheron, especially the magics of fire and water. Earth magics have absolutely no effect on the iron cubes of the plane. ...
Thoughts?
The next pair of questions I have would normally be posed to afroakuma, but his planar question thread is locked down, and he hasn't been active in months.
Second:
I read constantly (in 3e Manual of the Planes, 2e Planescape material) that when the clashing cubes of Acheron collide, it seems that the cubes collide flat-face to flat-face, destroying EVERYTHING on the overlapping flat faces of the cubes. There is one indication of such in the 3.0 Manual of the Planes (quoted below), but there are many more inferences to it in the 2e Planescape material as well. Still, it is never stated flat out, as I just did in this paragraph. (Though see the quote about Clangor and Nishrek, which also alludes to it).
The cubes that make up each of the four layers of Acheron are pitted and scarred with cracks and dents from their many collisions and craters from their many battles. On the orderly plane of Acheron, the cubes always rust or fracture along straight lines and at right angles.
...
The cubes vary [in size]. The smallest cubes are usually the oldest, having been reduced to their present size by eons of collisions.
...
Travelers in Avalas and Thuldanin must be wary of collisions between the cubes, because everything between the two cubes at impact is crushed into nothingness. Cubes bound for collision are visible a day or two in advance of impact, providing enough warning for evacuation.
Are collisions between cubes only ever face-to-face? And as such, any craters would be square and flat-bottomed?
Or can a corner collide with a cube-face, creating a triangular crater with three sloping crater-faces leading down to an inverted "point" at the bottom of the crater?
Third:
The 3.0 MotP has some entries about Clangor and Nishrek, housing the ever-warring goblin and orc armies, as well as the goblin deity Maglubiyet, and the Orc pantheon, including Gruumsh. It also has this side-bar, discussing how (in 2e) the two realms were opposite faces of the same cube, but are no longer:
The realms of Clangor and Nishrek were once a single cube, but the opposing deities of each realm finally managed to separate their realms into two wholly separate cubes. Though they are separated, enmity between the goblins of Clangor and the orcs of Nishrek is still great. Though the rival deities can prevent an entire cube face from being crushed by an opposing cube sent hurling through the void, that doesn’t stop either side from trying. Most battles are now fought when one side manages to land an invasion force on an opposing cube.
Combining this information with that from the earlier quotes, discussing the cubes always fracturing in straight lines at right angles, and seemingly as perfect cubes* (as it mentions the smallest cubes are the oldest, having been fractured many times over the eons), how can a formerly-single cube have fractured into two cubes? It could have fractured into two "flattened" "cubes" (basically 3-dimentional "rectangles"), but that seems to conflict with the fact that, at least in the first layer of Acheron, all the "cubes" actually ARE cubes* (get to the third layer of Acheron, and other shapes exist in number). Thus, when a large cube fractures, it must fracture into 8 smaller cubes (or smaller - think Rubix Cube breaking apart).
So, how would you rectify this information? Formerly a single cube, but now two "cubes?"
There are two possible answers. The two realms of Clangor and Nishrek were not actually on opposing faces, but were on opposing corners, and when the cube was divided, it became 8 smaller cubes, with Clangor inhabiting one of the 8, and Nishrek another of the 8. The other six sections have floated off to wherever else in the plane.
The other option is that the two realms really were on opposite faces, and when the cube broke, each deity/race took control of up to 4 of them. I envision this as the goblins holding 4 cubes, which are tethered together, in a loose arrangement, almost like ice cubes oriented but separated in an ice tray, with chains and bridges connecting them, and preventing them from drifting apart. Almost like tethering four rafts or innertubes together for a lazy float trip
Thoughts?
*
* Geometric shapes other than cubes exist, though they are rare (except on Tintibulus, the third layer).
Lastly, the portal the PC's are expected to use to arrive in Acheron is supposed to deposit them on the "Battle Cube." Reading through 2e material, I see that this was the name of the cube which contained Clangor and Nishrek. Also, any portals on that cube are supposed to be "heavily guarded."
Which force should be lucky enough to now control the portal, the goblins, or the orcs?
And how "heavily guarded" should it be when my 14th level PC's pop through from Rigus?