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    Canonfire :: View topic - Tell Me About Aquaria
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    Tell Me About Aquaria
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    Adept Greytalker

    Joined: Apr 26, 2002
    Posts: 538
    From: Canada

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    Thu Aug 17, 2017 7:18 pm  
    Tell Me About Aquaria

    Reading Eileen's announcement below about Aquaria, I soon realized that I know little to nothing about this part of Oerth. This thread is meant to fix that.

    In short, what is Aquaria all about?

    Does it have a particular 'hook' or ongoing plot? Does it have demihumans and humanoids? Is the tech level higher or lower than in the Flanaess? Does it have a sort of balance or neutrality the way the Flanaess often does? What are the 'Twin Cataclysms' of its history-the events that have defined the history of the setting?
    Black Hand of Oblivion

    Joined: Feb 16, 2003
    Posts: 3835
    From: So. Cal

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    Fri Aug 18, 2017 2:27 am  

    Quote:
    Frank Mentzer, Creative Consultant at TSR...wrote four RPGA tournament adventures taken from his home campaign setting of Aquaria (published by TSR as the first four of the R-series modules: R1 To the Aid of Falx, R2 The Investigation of Hydell, R3 The Egg of the Phoenix, and R4 Doc's Island). Mentzer envisioned them as the first part of a new Aqua-Oeridian campaign set somewhere on Oerth outside of the Flanaess.


    I'd start with the modules (which are collected in I 12: The Egg of the Phoenix http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/17047/I12-Egg-of-the-Phoenix-1e?it=1), and then move on to...some links:

    https://www.kirith.com/random-wizard/articles/blackmoor-oerth-wilderlands-aquaria.html

    http://mcgillsociety.org/dnd/dnd-misc/codex/greyhawk/history/ghhist7.htm

    http://greyhawkgrognard.blogspot.com/2012/03/gonduria-aquaria-and-oerths-four.html

    There is also this, which popped up...oh...seven days ago:

    http://greyhawkgrognard.blogspot.com/2017/08/exciting-news-from-frank-mentzer.html

    I don't know what the time frame on putting anything out is, but straight from the horse's mouth is as good as it gets. Cool

    Also mentioned here: http://www.canonfire.com/cf/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=8635
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    Grandmaster Greytalker

    Joined: Jul 09, 2003
    Posts: 1358
    From: Tennessee, between Ft. Campbell & APSU

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    Fri Aug 18, 2017 8:01 am  
    Re: Tell Me About Aquaria

    CruelSummerLord wrote:

    In short, what is Aquaria all about?


    -So, is this the dawning of the land of Aquaria?



    Wink


    I was about to ask the obvious question "Where on Oerth do we fit Aquaria?", but this:

    http://greyhawkgrognard.blogspot.com/2012/03/gonduria-aquaria-and-oerths-four.html

    ...shows that it's feasible, even if you don't accept that exact solution.

    [EDIT]


    Last edited by jamesdglick on Sat Aug 19, 2017 6:28 am; edited 1 time in total
    Adept Greytalker

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    Fri Aug 18, 2017 3:37 pm  
    Lpcation

    Yeah, I'm wondering what the continent looks like to see if it makes sense to overlay it on the existing maps where Fireland is of if I should consider it somewhere else in the ocean which hasn't yet been mapped for whatever reason (magic?).
    GreySage

    Joined: Aug 03, 2001
    Posts: 3310
    From: Michigan

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    Fri Aug 18, 2017 3:56 pm  

    The original Aquaria campaign used a portion of Judge's Guild's Wilderlands (the Valon Sector) as the basis of its map, so it's only a small portion of a continent and could fit pretty much anywhere. It could be part of Fireland or western Oerik or the unnamed continent to the south.

    Here's a website that shows one suggestion: https://www.kirith.com/random-wizard/articles/blackmoor-oerth-wilderlands-aquaria.html

    In the module Doc's Island, it's said to be "a small territory about 5,000 miles east of the continent known as Oerik." The Solnor Ocean is only 3,000 miles across (LGG, 149).

    Note that the Aquaria campaign also takes place centuries in the past. There's a timeline here: http://www.dragonsfoot.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=10717&start=60

    From what I understand, the new version will drop its resemblance to the Wilderlands. Frank Mentzer talks about that a little here: http://www.thepiazza.org.uk/bb/viewtopic.php?f=64&t=12405&p=146400&hilit=wilderlands+valon#p146400
    Adept Greytalker

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    Thu Aug 24, 2017 1:53 pm  
    Wilderlands Bit

    The coastline Frank used is so small that it gives no real indication what the rest of the continent is shaped like. If you look at the Wilderlands map available from
    [url]
    https://www.acaeum.com/jg/WilderlandsMapTimeline.html
    [/url]
    then you can see for yourself the part Frank used. It's the Valon (area 5) coastline. If you look at Ghenrek IV's continent of Rhadamanthia map, I guess you could hack the continent in half and just use the eastern half. When I looked at this a few years ago, it didn't appeal to me. But now it appeals more to me than it did then. Until Frank publishes something, that's all I've seen to work with.
    GreySage

    Joined: Aug 03, 2001
    Posts: 3310
    From: Michigan

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    Sat Sep 02, 2017 7:01 am  

    Frank Mentzer wrote a little bit about the surrounding region in this thread.

    ExTSR wrote:
    Bigger picture:

    Empyrea (realm)
    Borderlands nearby N E S
    West: Coast & Sea
    Northeast (adjacent): the High Plateau, a lost-world thing, nearly inaccessible unless you can fly
    Southeast (adjacent but beyond the Great Barrier Mountains): a hidden coastal area full of... aliens
    North: Vast mountains headed for the pole
    South: Vast forests/mix, tapering to a continental isthmus south (picture N/S America)


    It looks like the continent is definitely in the northern hemisphere.
    CF Admin

    Joined: Jun 29, 2001
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    From: Wichita, KS, USA

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    Sun Sep 03, 2017 5:25 pm  

    At one time (in the AOL days) Frank had a pretty extensive set of files available that described Aquaria. I don't seem to have them on my current external HD, but IIRC they were available somewhere else too (geocities?) before AOL went bust.

    Allan.
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    Adept Greytalker

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    Fri Sep 08, 2017 12:26 pm  
    Based on that description

    Based on that description from Frank, I know what I envision there now. I don't want to really say more until he's had a chance to produce his version.

    Thanks!
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