Suggestions for Lower Content

[John Doe]

It's nostalgia that brought me back to Lower Sanctuary, but the whole place is just feeling like a shell of what it once was. Lower's basically unchanged in its layout, but it's just generally an uninteresting place to creep around atm. A lot of potentially interesting areas have been shut down or removed, and while it's something of an over-time progress, it just isn't quite there yet.

It's not even to say that players haven't tried to live it up some. The Mongrels & Charles' arena events have both been succesful in drawing a lot of attention towards Lower.

Perhaps it is my own lack of creativity, but I don't know how to administer growth to Lower where our population is around an odd 15 people (PCs/NPCs).

I'm trying to make a change though,  and in time I'm sure we'll see improvements (such as the recently implemented NPC merchants spawning in the Crone. Awesome!).

What I'd really love above all other things is more anxiety (and perhaps DM-promoted frequency) of the gas attacks, and clearer representation of its effects on people.

[Blue41]

The merchants are a good step forward. When I've had chats with people ICly about why they were hotdogging between Lower and Upper, merchants was one of the reasons. I think the lack of a stable player base is the other reason, OOCly, and a lot of that has to do with how little there is to see or do in Lower Sanctuary.

What I feel Lower is needs are a few areas or more NPC-life in general  that could provoke a few interesting concept ideas like the ones that  have been suggested so far. Maybe a tribe of Kuo-toa exiles settle along the Canal Ward. Maybe the Ooze has taken up a new home among the Chosen, deep below the Pumphouse. Maybe a cult of Dendar springs up in the back alleys, open only to those who show their devotion. Bottom line is that though Lower is in ruins, it doesn't need to literally be a mass grave. Make the sewers, or the Southern alleys, or  further, viable spots for PC groups to gather, grow and rock out- which  is why I proposed more spawn points.

A lot of the ideas proposed might make for...alright NPC groups, but I could see them having a lot more success as PC groups, as Zango said. That's not a bad thing- PC's might come for new quests, but they stay for the interesting concepts and groups of PC's, even those that appear to want nothing to do with Upper Sanctuary. Lower doesn't have to become what it used to be, and it doesn't need to have an analogue to Upper's factions either. The Mongrels came about because of what Lower used to have- a lot of gangs. Crone fight-night is also a throwback, as well as the employees of the Crone that nearly started up.

Lower should be awash with opportunities for Chaotic-aligned players with groups or goals to accomplish. I understand that some patience is needed to wait for change to be made, and it's not entirely on the shoulders of DM's either. Be the change you want to see, and shit.

[Inquisitor]

I would like a lower faction that wantonly handed out DM loot and attention...?

[Spiffy Has]

I think the DMs wanted to get away from another upper vs lower. Docks vs Dominion, the best way to do that is to not even consider giving a population to Lower.

A few merchants are fine, maybe some crazy NPC dialogue, but I don't really think returning the days of Old is necessarily a positive thing.

[Dillusionist]

I think the DMs wanted to get away from another upper vs lower. Docks vs Dominion, the best way to do that is to not even consider giving a population to Lower.

A few merchants are fine, maybe some crazy NPC dialogue, but I don't really think returning the days of Old is necessarily a positive thing.

Lots of good ideas, but I'm going to second this. To some extent I think its really effective as a sparsely inhabited area poised to become the sandbox of whatever chaotic player factions crop up much in the vein of Old Stones. There's definitely cool stuff to find in Lower and the Canal Ward if you look hard enough. The one thing that really compels me, as a player who has only experienced EFU:M, are a lot of these ruined shops that are otherwise inaccessible.

Maybe some lower-sanctuary-oriented exploration areas, much like the Worminger explorations, could pump some life into the area while still making it feel more like you're exploring a ruin?

[Vlaid]

The ideal of lower vs upper is something best left to be worked out as the story unfolds. It doesn't exactly seem inherently bad to me, to have that dividing line that unites people on either side against some bigger boogeyman that lives below/above them though.

I think the best idea for Lower content is for players with cool ideas to make groups that make sense in Lower and do something more interesting than just the occasional thugging and pvping. Though with the high amount of brutality in the area it might be difficult to last long enough to see change. I guess that's part of the challenge? The way Lower felt was not for me though I have no doubt in time through both player and DM initiatives it will grow into something more than it is now.