Eberron Leveling

[Maeglin_Dubh]

Had this idea for an Eberron campaign we're doing.

We're not super-familiar with Eberron, but it seems like past 8 there isn't much on the main continent to challenge you. Also, we want to set it up so people have multiple characters, a stable as it were, to select from if they want to change things up.

Here's how it goes.

1-4 You can learn from the stories others bring back. Characters that don't go on adventures gain half XP from quests that the rest of the party goes on.

5-8 The rubber meets the road. There's not much else you can learn from stories, you've got to start doing your own legwork.

9-12 There isn't much left for you to see on this continent. Time to go abroad.

13+ There isn't much left for you to see on this plane. Time to go planehopping.


Does this sound like a reasonable progression?

[DaragosKitsune]

What about the Mournland?

[Cuaqchi]

Or the Demon Wastes?

[MeeposFire]

Or going to see the three hag sisters?

[Flickerdart]

I don't play Eberron, but surely there are some kingdoms on the continent you could conquer.

[Necro_EX]

Or going into Khyber.

Or NPCs that want you dead.

Or NPCs that want you to kill other NPCs.

Buuuut, I think I see what you're getting at by the idea of having backup characters 'stabled' and giving them half exp early on, that seems to work pretty well, actually.

[Maeglin_Dubh]

Like I said, we're not terribly familiar with Eberron challenge areas.

I'd welcome suggestions for those tiers.

[jguy]

If you go to the underdark equivalent of the zone the daelkyr exist there. CR 20's who use flesh and souls like most people use clay. Can create some pretty epic fights there.

[0Megabyte]

There's plenty in Khorvaire to challenge people all the way up into epic. First of all, at levels 9-12, you have such things as arch-enemies, the sort who level at the same rate as you do. You have the Rhakshasa of the Lords of Dust, who could be anyone at any time. You have wide spaces on the maps where there are no cities mentioned. In those places you have many things. You have cities, towns and villages. Lords and manors. You also have ancient crypts from the days of the Dhakaani empire. You have haunted forests with manifest zones to Mabar or Dollurh. You have blasted ruins of villages where the devastation has brought forth horrible spirits. You have areas of magical ruin which are of a lesser scale than the Mournland, but which have all sorts of horrors within.

Honestly, just pick a monster from the Monster Manual. Have a Bullette attacking a nearby town. Have a demon brought from one of the planes by a Cult of the Dragon Below. Have a rogue horde of angels from Shavannah or whatever the plane of endless battle was called come to wreak havoc. (they don't have to be good, after all.) Have a cleric of the Silver Flame become corrupt, and battle his minions. Fight some of the undead of Karrnath, which its mad scientist guy is testing "lost". (Really, I'm not making that up!) Go to Q'barra and deal with the lizardfolk tribes and the worse monsters of the jungles. (And the dragon. Don't forget the dragon.) Go visit the Talenta Plains and battle the Valenar elves and giant dinosaurs. Fight a couple warforged titans or other gigantic constructs from the war in various places. Battle a frost worm in the remote peaks of the Mror Holds, or a Kraken in the Lhazaar Sea. Have some elementals go berserk and break free from a Zilargo hold, and deal with everything up to elder elementals or worse,

Or go to the Mournlands. The Demon Wastes. Remote places in the Shadow Marches. Go to Khyber underground. Who knows what horrors wait underneath the Cogs in Sharn. At higher levels, see if you can handle Mordain the Fleshweaver, and whatever monsters he throws at you. (whatever horrific things are level-appropriate, really.) Battle the weakest of the Daelkyr, which is CR 20.

There's plenty to do in Khorvaire. More than any single adventuring party could ever handle.

[Necro_EX]

Get the book 'Exemplars of Evil' if you can. Its a great resource for any DM. That is, until you've used everything in it, then it's not really much...

However, it does have a couple of villains in there that each have a '_____ in Eberron' and a '_______ in Faerun' entry that make them easy enough to work into a campaign in either setting. I used one and it took the party from level...8 to about level 10, about half-way through what I had written up.

[AslanCross]

The Mournland is full of ineffable threats that may very well go all the way into epic. The Lord of Blades awaits.

Sharn's underbelly, as has been mentioned, is full of sneaky things hiding there.

The party could also go up against the Order of the Emerald Claw, which should have it share of powerful operatives. Same thing with the Silver Flame.

The Lords of Dust, the Daelkyr, and many other threats are based in Khorvaire.

For threats of CRs 16+, consider some rogue giants of Xen'Drik, or perhaps an insurrection in Sarlona against the Inspired.

And seriously, if you want epic threats, go confront any one of the epic CR dragons on Argonnessen. PCs with a less-than-sterling sense of morality could probably go raid Tiamat's Pit of Five Sorrows there, which is the single most heavily-defended prison on Eberron. It's got a detachment of epic dragons guarding it.

[Bagger]

or you could free he anciant evil under wisper rock in Aundair :) always a good one

[sonofzeal]

To expand on the theme here....


Eberron has a rather different level spread than most campaign settings, clustered in the low ranged. Few NPC ever reach double digits, and there are perhaps two or three mortals on the continent who can cast 9th lvl spells (that I'm aware of).

This is not to say that there aren't higher level challenges, though. Let's take a Dhakaani Strike Force, played smart and using terrain advantages, and see how the PCs cope. Or a small army. Or House Thulani assassins coming in their sleep. As the PCs advance, big threatening fights will probably become less common but insidious. Remember, Eberron is full of creative, inventive, manipulative types. What would Morrikan d'Kundarak do if someone was knocking over his banks? He has wealth out the wazoo, and favours all over the map. Until the PCs have their own kingdom, he'll post a credible threat.

Also, there are four major continents in Eberron. Khorvaire is generally the safest, followed likely by Xen'drix, with Sarlona and then Argonnessen being the most dangerous. If you're having trouble challenging your players in Khorvaire, move them somewhere else. You can have just about anything but the kitchen sink in Xen'drix as long as it's on the feral side, Sarlona's got your Big Brother Is Watching hyper-competent empire powered by dangerous extraplanar psychic entities, and Argonnessen... well, at that point, Khyber's probably safer. Just don't piss off a Rajah.

[Greenish]

there are perhaps two or three mortals on the continent who can cast 9th lvl spells (that I'm aware of).

Keeper Jaela Daran, Greatdruid Oalian and…?

What would Morrikan d'Kundarak do if someone was knocking over his banks? He has wealth out the wazoo, and favours all over the map. Until the PCs have their own kingdom, he'll post a credible threat.

Even if you have a kingdom on your own, you won't want to pick fights with House Kundarak.

Khorvaire is generally the safest, followed likely by Xen'drix, with Sarlona and then Argonnessen being the most dangerous.

Most of Sarlona is perfectly safe, as long as you're a brainwashed drone doing exactly what the Inspired want you to.

[sonofzeal]

Keeper Jaela Daran, Greatdruid Oalian and…?

...and I'm not quite sure how Vol is statted. There also may be someone in the Towers of Arcanix, I don't know if much has ever been written about them. Also, Iron Golems have been described and they're supposed to require CL 16 and 7th level spell. Thus, I'd say there's almost certainly a few higher level casters/artificers around who haven't been mentioned.

Even if you have a kingdom on your own, you won't want to pick fights with House Kundarak.

Point. Still, once you start getting past lvl 15 or so, there isn't as much House K can actually do to you. At that point, they'd probably just go after your allies and support network. They'd still be relevant before that though.

Most of Sarlona is perfectly safe, as long as you're a brainwashed drone doing exactly what the Inspired want you to.

I believe the relevant phrase here, for most PCs, is "fate worse than death".

[Greenish]

...and I'm not quite sure how Vol is statted.

I don't think she is. Anyhow, I was more thinking of named NPCs.

There was an NPC somewhere who had an item with Refuge cast by his mum...

[Coidzor]

From the earlier article series, some high-level magic peeps samples.

Even if you have a kingdom on your own, you won't want to pick fights with House Kundarak.

Indeed, getting one's army up and equipped and staying that way, especially if going on campaign is not cheap, even for adventurers.

[0Megabyte]

Keeper Jaela Daran, Greatdruid Oalian and…?

Mordain the Fleshweaver. Yes, he's as bad as he sounds.

[Tanuki Tales]

Vol is a Neutral Evil Elf Half-Dragon with 16 levels in Wizard. So no, she can't cast 9th level spells.

[Da Beast]

The Frostfell hasn't been mentioned yet. Arctic continent north of Khorvaire full of undead and other nasty beasts. As far as I know it is mostly undefined in the rule books so you have plenty of room to insert high to epic level challenges and as many of them as you like.

Edit ^Vol is also a lich. NE Elven lich half green dragon wizard 16.

[Coidzor]

So giving her an extra level isn't exactly the biggest of stretches.

[Maeglin_Dubh]

Frostfell might be awesomely fun... I like what I've read of that book.