Ossie1972 wrote:
> Now I have not actually read the original
> modules yet, but I'm pretty sure you start (or at least you will get
> slaughtered unless you start) from level 4.
The characters as originally written in DL1 actually cover a range of
levels: from 3rd Level (Raistlin) to 6th Level (Sturm and Caramon). But,
I am not sure that would be as im****tant in 3.5e. Furthermore, since
3.5e characters tend to be more powerful than 1e characters (and advance
much more quickly), having all the characters start DL1 around 3rd level
I imagine is a good idea.
> Rather than just creating
> 4th level characters from scratch, what suggestions would you make for
> campaigns/adventures/modules to start off the "Dragonlance" party from
> level 1, to build them up to around level 4 in preparation for then
> stepping straight into the original modules DL1-DL14? Given we are
> playing 3.5e, they don't have to specifically be AD&D, but for
> consistency of story leading into the original modules, that would
> probably be ideal.
Here's what I always suggest, and if you're going for a nostalgic
experience it might fit. In 1984 (when DL1 was published), many if not
most people would have played module B2 The Keep on the Borderlands as
their first D&D experience (it was included in all the Basic D&D sets
and sold separately). Having run this module three times, I am convinced
that it is the best module ever written. It demands a lot of creativity
on the part of the DM and the Players both, and in terms of character
development it provides the maximum amount of op****tunities. It is also
very difficult.
It wasn't written for Dragonlance (it's deliberately left very "generic"
or "modular" in terms of setting), so you'll need to tailor it a little.
Orcs are a major factor in the module, and since orcs don't exist in DL,
you'll have to replace them. (In my own, heretical home campaign, I
would just leave them as Orcs, and to the Abyss with canon.)
The biggest problem you'll have is how to survive this already difficult
module without clerical healing. Of course, you'll have that problem in
any and all pre-DL1 adventuring. One way of handling this is to just let
it be that difficult. This approach will make clerical magic really
worth fighting for in DL1. After all, in Basic D&D, Clerics don't get
any spells at first level, anyway. The opposite approach would be to let
your cleric character have the Blue Crystal Staff right from the
beginning of the campaign, and to just not have the agents of evil hot
on the pursuit until you reach DL1.
The "temple of evil chaos" in B2 could be tailored to be appropriately
dragon-themed to help foreshadow the return of the Queen of Darkness.
The "keep on the borderlands" could easily be Langtree (home of the "Mad
Baron" Ivor of Langtree that Caramon and Raistlin served under). I
definitely think using "Brothers in Arms" for inspiration is a really
nifty idea.
Just a suggestion. Enjoy! By the way, B2 can be bought for a dime a
dozen, and I mean that almost literally. Regards.
--
Michael Falconer - http://ulmo.mux.net/dragonlance/
"Because by fate even the gods are cast down, weep ye all with me."
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