I am Howlando, AMA

[TsunamiWombat]

1.  You've said before it's possible to become a god. Is it really? I've always fancied the idea of replacing Torm with a chaotic good "Righteous Fury" over the Loyal Fury so the Triad would have a LG, NG, and CG series of dieties

2. What advice would you give for PCs who want nice and happy things to happen, beyond 'play somewhere else's

3. Do you think there's simply a tendency for villainous PCs and their agendas to be more competent and driven than supposedly heroic PCs?

4. Waffles or Pancakes?

5. I know you've said you dislike how involved FRs cosmogical beings are in creation, but when is Ao or his boss gonna get off their arse and do something about the primordial concept of the void eating everything?

[Howlando]

1.

You've said before it's possible to become a god. Is it really? I've always fancied the idea of replacing Torm with a chaotic good "Righteous Fury" over the Loyal Fury so the Triad would have a LG, NG, and CG series of dieties

Practically speaking it's unlikely for a PC to truly become a God. I can imagine circumstances where it would happen, but it would be as part of some very elaborate plot and be somewhat reliant on a very serious and awe-inspiring effort on behalf of an outstanding player with a large supporting cast of allied PCs and be done over the course of a very long time.

I think it's a somewhat silly goal, perhaps suited for an insane/megalomaniacal PC, but for the truly ambitious I'd suggest things like...

- Become the next Spellguard Commander
- Destroy Etorix Once More
- Complete (or destroy) the Dunwarren Machine
- Destroy the Elder Brain of Ysinode
- Become Warlord of Dunwarren
- Establish your own palace within Final Sanctuary
- Transcend your human form and become Aberrant Master of the Exile Colective
- Drain the streets of Lower Sanctuary from the ooze, or let it rise and engulf the world

2.

What advice would you give for PCs who want nice and happy things to happen, beyond 'play somewhere else's

That is definitely not the advice I would provide. I really think it's a misconception if you think I or other DMs don't want "PCs who want nice and happy things to happen" to be around. EFU is admittedly dark, but I genuinely think a dark setting allows good-aligned characters to shine all the more brightly.

I think it depends on the goals somewhat. A heroic champion of light will have a hard time of it because all PCs who want to accomplish great things will have a hard time of it. But I think - for example - there's a lot of room for just regular decent folk who try to buck things up despite the pressure. I think carving out a little decency in the darkness can be a great thing to portray and not unduly difficult in EFU.

3. Do you think there's simply a tendency for villainous PCs and their agendas to be more competent and driven than supposedly heroic PCs?

Often this is the case, yes, but not always.

4. Waffles or Pancakes?

Pancakes.

5. I know you've said you dislike how involved FRs cosmogical beings are in creation, but when is Ao or his boss gonna get off their arse and do something about the primordial concept of the void eating everything?

I really wouldn't count on that. I think in large part some of the cosmological disasters that have taken place can be seen as a way to shift towards a setting increasingly devoid of over-powers and one with more ambiguity and... uncertainty.

[zDark Shadowz]

It's around this era that Dragonborn (not counting the Dragonborn of Bahamut) were introduced to Toril.

Is this a subrace that might be introduced in future, or might already be available?

[Howlando]

I don't think so.

[putrid_plum]

Do you cry a bit deep inside when you see people using 2 healing knives while using the herb packs to heal people?

[Howlando]

Dual wielding scalpels doesn't quite make sense but I understand the impulse; I've been making a point to set the ones that we have to disallow an off hand weapon which should take care of it.

[TsunamiWombat]

Do you cry a bit deep inside when you see people using 2 healing knives while using the herb packs to heal people?

I'm pretty sure that's against the rules now and it's even in the item desc!

[bobofwestoregonusa]

There are plenty of knives that do not say that.

[Aethereal]

Hello Howland,

EDIT: I believe I've found the answers to my original questions through trawling through a years worth of missed major events, rumours and gossip and other content. New one added instead!

Rabbanatha the Pure,Glaurophynaxia the Fierce,Abanaxra the Sleeper,and ?

That's all, really. I think at some point there was a fourth that had died and was going to be used by H'bala as a headless steed, but - as it didn't really happen too much - I can't be bothered to try to find the name, if it even had one.

I thought it was uncovered back in EFU:M (memories are sketchy though) that the fourth mist dragon was from whom the Crown of the Isles was forged? Was that not the case?

Ah yes, found it, the Fourth book of Torizaela:

"The Fourth was the coming of Men. The isle would be forever changed by their coming, not least in name.


Where the elves bade the stone and forest to be as one, the Netherese would suffer nothing that did not bend to their will in the most complete precision. Their history is the longest, and of all histories--the best recorded on this island of Zephulot Ymph.


There was a majesty in their works and so thorough a violation of the island that I fled into my Brother's domain. Even there, we discovered, we were not safe.


Times of crisis came to Netheril, and a Conclave was held in the deep forests. There they blamed the mist for their troubles, and for the terrible visions that plagued their dying empire. 


They found us, and bound him in their spells. He, the mightiest of us. Dear Brother, I am so sorry for what they did to you...


He would speak nothing of it, for so long. I watched--I cannot remember whether it was months, or years. But eventually, they broke him, and took from him our greatest discovery and secret.

.. and they named it the Crown of the Isles.


This failure I attribute to my Weakness."

That is about him, the fourth dragon, no? I have of course assumed some things though: that it is Rabbanatha referring to an unnamed fourth and not one of the three known (the other male possibility being Abanaxra - but then that would mean Abanaxra would have been both her mate and someone she referred to as brother, which might actually be fine I guess but seems inconsistent in terms of how one might refer to their mate, presumably with a different manner of address or term of endearment) and that they carved it from his broken form much as Barakat did with Abanaxra. So, they may not have actually done that - I just read it that way, probably in light of what actually did end up happening to Abanaxra.

Follow up question: What would have happened if a player had put on the Crown of the Isles? (I imagine a variety of possibilities, determined by roll, or being retired into NPC status.)

[putrid_plum]

Has anyone ever used the fabled 'corpse hand'???

[zDark Shadowz]

How do we change or acquire Custom Titles? Is it something a forum moderator grants or is it something I can adjust myself?

[Howlando]

I thought it was uncovered back in EFU:M (memories are sketchy though) that the fourth mist dragon was from whom the Crown of the Isles was forged? Was that not the case?

You are correct, the Crown of the Isles was carved from a dead Mist Dragon and the Dark Crown used by Barakat that allowed him to awaken Dendar was likewise carved from a dead Mist Dragon (Abanaxra).

Follow up question: What would have happened if a player had put on the Crown of the Isles? (I imagine a variety of possibilities, determined by roll, or being retired into NPC status.)

We would have taken it seriously and discussed with the team and player how to handle it. Generally speaking, the character would have received powers and abilities vastly beyond the purview of normal mechanical abilities but would almost certainly have swiftly fallen into a state of madness and increasing insanity until death. At least, that is my speculation - many things about EFU are not precisely planned in advance, but are developed spontaneously as the story unravels and so who knows what would have occurred. I will say that I appreciate that players took the Crown seriously and did not rush to just put it on for the sake of careless zany "let's see what happens" but instead stayed true to their characters and gave the whole plot a genuine gravitas that I and other DMs really appreciated.

[Howlando]

Has anyone ever used the fabled 'corpse hand'???

I'm sure it's been used as flavor for many different necromantic rituals.

How do we change or acquire Custom Titles? Is it something a forum moderator grants or is it something I can adjust myself?

A motivated DM is required.

[Jello!]

Ever going to do those "Scroll of random teleportation" events ever again? I had alot of fun with those on Rose.

[Howlando]

Ever going to do those "Scroll of random teleportation" events ever again? I had alot of fun with those on Rose.

For sure.