ZEITGEIST Campaign Guide [5E]

Making it's grand debut in EN5ider, the ZEITGEIST adventure path Campaign Guide is now available to all patrons. Steam and soot darken the skies above the city of Flint, and winds sweeping across its majestic harbor blow the choking products of industrial forges into the fey rainforests that dot its knife-toothed mountains. Since the earliest ages when the people of Risur founded this city, they feared the capricious beings that hid in those fog-shrouded peaks, but now as the march of progress and the demands of national defense turn Flint into a garden for artifice and technology, the old faiths and rituals that kept the lurkers of the woods at bay are being abandoned.

​

The Unseen Court, the Great Hunt, and the many spirits of the land long ago conquered by Risur’s kings no longer receive tribute, but they cannot enter these new cities of steam and steel to demand their tithe. The impoverished workers who huddle in factory slums fear monsters of a different breed, shadowy children of this new urban labyrinth. Even their modern religions have no defenses against these fiends.

Times are turning. The skyseers – Risurs folk prophets since their homeland’s birth – witness omens in the starry wheels of heaven, and they warn that a new age is nigh. But what they cannot foresee, hidden beyond the steam and soot of the night sky, is the face of this coming era, the spirit of the age. The zeitgeist.

The Campaign Guide details the plot of the ZEITGEIST adventure path and introduces various antagonists and power groups. If you're planning on playing the ZEITGEIST adventure path (rather than running it), this guide will seriously spoil the experience for you.

When it was originally released for Pathfinder, this is what well-known reviewer Endzeitgeist (no relation!) had to say: "This is the most ambitious AP you can buy and also the most intelligent - with a focus on a complex weave of narratives, deceptions and espionage, it cannot be compared to any other AP in scope and focus and is ambitious to an unprecedented level. The story is so compelling, diverse and challenging, it is bound to become a legend, far surpassing even War of the Burning Sky and similar epics with its daunting focus on smarts and roleplaying over killing everything that moves."

This 27-page Campaign Guide is free to EN5ider patrons - you will not be charged for it. It introduces the AP to GMs, and outlines the plot of the thirteen adventures. Coming soon is the Player's Guide which includes ZEITGEIST player options and setting information.

Get it now on EN5ider!

 

[Ath-kethin]

I'm reading through it, and I like it, but there are several references to Page XX. I assume this was an editing oversight in the final draft? There are two such references on Page 6 alone.

 

[MNblockhead]

Yes, they will be converting the AP to 5e, that's the announcement.

 

[werecorpse]

As a "lifetime subscriber" for the "I defended the wall" do I get this conversion?

 

[Aoirorentsu]

There are a few references to mechanics of past editions in the en-five-der ( ) Zeitgeist campaign guide - e.g. reference to an "Epic Tier". Not a problem, of course, but it got me curious...

Given the differences between 4e and 5e (not just tiers, but also differences in assumptions about gridded play, existence of formal skill challenges etc.), how will the conversion handle these? E.g. will skill challenges be converted into group checks of some kind? (I realize this will likely differ by skill challenge).

Will it still assume a level of gridded play for combat?

For another example, 4e and 5e make very different assumptions about encounter-building: e.g. CR in 5e is intended as a normal challenge for a normal-sized party of level = the monster's CR, where in 4e the equivalent would be a group of monsters of level = party's level, and number = # of PCs.

I know you know all this, and I believe y'all will do it well. I'd just be interested to know how you handle these sorts of differences. Thanks! Really looking forward to the Zeitgeist conversion!

 

[Morrus]

There are a few references to mechanics of past editions in the en-five-der ( ) Zeitgeist campaign guide - e.g. reference to an "Epic Tier". Not a problem, of course, but it got me curious...

Given the differences between 4e and 5e (not just tiers, but also differences in assumptions about gridded play, existence of formal skill challenges etc.), how will the conversion handle these? E.g. will skill challenges be converted into group checks of some kind? (I realize this will likely differ by skill challenge).

Will it still assume a level of gridded play for combat?

For another example, 4e and 5e make very different assumptions about encounter-building: e.g. CR in 5e is intended as a normal challenge for a normal-sized party of level = the monster's CR, where in 4e the equivalent would be a group of monsters of level = party's level, and number = # of PCs.

I know you know all this, and I believe y'all will do it well. I'd just be interested to know how you handle these sorts of differences. Thanks! Really looking forward to the Zeitgeist conversion!

It was out for Pathfinder too. It's not just a conversion from 4E. But I'll let [MENTION=6777571]Jumblejacks[/MENTION] the EN5ider editor talk about it more, as he's converting the adventures. K

 

[Morrus]

As a "lifetime subscriber" for the "I defended the wall" do I get this conversion?

It's free! Knock yourself out!

 

[jamesjhaeck]

There are a few references to mechanics of past editions in the en-five-der ( ) Zeitgeist campaign guide - e.g. reference to an "Epic Tier". Not a problem, of course, but it got me curious...

Given the differences between 4e and 5e (not just tiers, but also differences in assumptions about gridded play, existence of formal skill challenges etc.), how will the conversion handle these? E.g. will skill challenges be converted into group checks of some kind? (I realize this will likely differ by skill challenge).

Will it still assume a level of gridded play for combat?

For another example, 4e and 5e make very different assumptions about encounter-building: e.g. CR in 5e is intended as a normal challenge for a normal-sized party of level = the monster's CR, where in 4e the equivalent would be a group of monsters of level = party's level, and number = # of PCs.

I know you know all this, and I believe y'all will do it well. I'd just be interested to know how you handle these sorts of differences. Thanks! Really looking forward to the Zeitgeist conversion!

This 5e conversion is based off of the Pathfinder RPG version of ZEITGEIST, since 5e inherits more d20 System mechanics than 4e mechanics. Encounter level conversion is still the biggest concern, since the CR of Pathfinder monsters are based on individual PCs, rather than a party of 4-5. There won't be any problem with that—the conversion of To Slay a Dragon was a valuable lesson in encounter building.

I don't want to go into too much detail just yet, but we're trying to keep things as close to the original as we can. Some things don't translate perfectly in conversion, so there will be some adaptation of structure and powers. It will feel like 5e. There was some internal discussion of renovating Prestige Classes, but we felt that it made the most sense to keep them in. Consider Prestige Classes as a mechanic unique to the flavor of this AP, like giant runes were unique to Storm King's Thunder and genasi were unique to Princes of the Apocalypse.

 

[werecorpse]

It's free! Knock yourself out!

that is excellent news, I certainly shall!

 

[TailleferTheWise]

Is there a rough timeline for when the first adventure will be published, and about how frequently the subsequent pieces will arrive? I'll be starting a campaign soon with a new group from work, and am curious if I should consider this as an option. Thanks!

This 5e conversion is based off of the Pathfinder RPG version of ZEITGEIST, since 5e inherits more d20 System mechanics than 4e mechanics. Encounter level conversion is still the biggest concern, since the CR of Pathfinder monsters are based on individual PCs, rather than a party of 4-5. There won't be any problem with that—the conversion of To Slay a Dragon was a valuable lesson in encounter building.

I don't want to go into too much detail just yet, but we're trying to keep things as close to the original as we can. Some things don't translate perfectly in conversion, so there will be some adaptation of structure and powers. It will feel like 5e. There was some internal discussion of renovating Prestige Classes, but we felt that it made the most sense to keep them in. Consider Prestige Classes as a mechanic unique to the flavor of this AP, like giant runes were unique to Storm King's Thunder and genasi were unique to Princes of the Apocalypse.

 

[Zardnaar]

Read it the other day. Might actually play it.