D&D 5E [ToA] Omu legends?

[CapnZapp]

At the start of chapter 3, a wealth of information is given to the DM.

But is it really the designers' intention to withhold all of this information from the players all through their travels before they reach Omu? The whole first half of the campaign is outside the lost city!

It seems like a wasted opportunity to not spice up the adventure with these legends already before they even find the Forbidden City.

I think I have read through most of the book detailing Chult outside of Omu, but can't off-hand remember any places where these details can be found outside of Omu itself. In other words, I know where to find the info in the book. I'm not looking for the page number where I the DM can read this. I am looking for the page numbers where the player characters find out the info!

What am I missing here? Let's list the main stories and you can tell me where each one can be learned of (again - by the party, not the DM):

* Omu's history, and it's place in Chult. It's all so desperately scattered: relationship to Mezro; lineage through the Omu Princess at Kir Sabal, connection to Ytepka Society. (There's a random encounter in Port Nyanzaru that speaks of "the city built by minotaurs taken over by snakes" but no mention of Minotaurs in Chapter 3. What gives?)
* History of Ras Nsi
* History of Chultan Yuan-Ti in general and Hisari
* Ubtao and the trickster Gods
* Red Wizards (actually, where in the city are they?)
* Yellow Banner
not to mention
* Acecerak (is the main baddie really meant to be completely invisible all the way through the entire campaign up until its very conclusion?!?!)

Really getting desperate here - I've prepped the module for weeks, and that's just chapters 1-3!!

 

[Warmaster Horus]

I'm having my players go to Mezro to dig up info on Omu, once they learn of the city via Grandfather Zitembe in Port Nyanzaru. One of my players has an Archeologist background and we'll leverage that with a quest and some cryptic clues that point to Mezro.

 

[robus]

Seems like a fun thing to do with the guide while sitting around the campfire during the travels through the jungle? Occasionally the guide will say something cryptic during dinner and that will get the players to ask for the story and off you go?

 

[CapnZapp]

I'm getting nervous by the complete lack of actual page numbers in the replies so far...

Does that mean the designers just forgot to foreshadowing anything?¿?

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[robus]

I'm getting nervous by the complete lack of actual page numbers in the replies so far...

Does that mean the designers just forgot to foreshadowing anything?¿?

Sent from my C6603 using EN World mobile app

Yeah it does seem that the DM is supposed to weave it in, but to be honest I’m not sure how else it could be done? Each location has an NPC or tablet to provide the exposition? That’s why I think the guide is the ideal deliverer of the legends as they travel the lands...

 

[Cap'n Kobold]

What am I missing here? Let's list the main stories and you can tell me where each one can be learned of (again - by the party, not the DM):

* Omu's history, and it's place in Chult. It's all so desperately scattered: relationship to Mezro; lineage through the Omu Princess at Kir Sabal, connection to Ytepka Society. (There's a random encounter in Port Nyanzaru that speaks of "the city built by minotaurs taken over by snakes" but no mention of Minotaurs in Chapter 3. What gives?)
* History of Ras Nsi
* History of Chultan Yuan-Ti in general and Hisari
* Ubtao and the trickster Gods
* Red Wizards (actually, where in the city are they?)
* Yellow Banner
not to mention
* Acecerak (is the main baddie really meant to be completely invisible all the way through the entire campaign up until its very conclusion?!?!)

Really getting desperate here - I've prepped the module for weeks, and that's just chapters 1-3!!

Hmm. Off the top of my head:
Artus Cimber is the source for Mezro, Ras Nsi etc. Mezro was a sort of "hidden city" so wasn't general knowledge IIRC. All of the Port will know of the undead released by Ras Nsi, but may not know where they came from.

Most Chultans will know of Ubtao no longer responding. The story of the trickster gods may be known by the sages and historians in the city such as some of the priests, the well-read merchant princes, and the aaracocra in their temple.
Likewise the history of Omu, but its not general knowledge that the heir still lives except by the aaracocra. Mazes are sort of sacred to Ubtao, and a tribe of minotaur's were involved in the construction and guarding of Omu because of their liking of them.
Otherwise the minotaur involvement is evident from some of the skeletons in Omu itself.

The Red Wizards are keeping a low profile I think. The first inkling is the introduction to the head priest for divinations, but they're not too obvious about it I think.

The Ytepka society is a mostly secret society. Their symbols are known, and introduced to the party in some of the port side quests, but I don't think that members are very open about their membership or the goals etc of the society.

Acererak's involvement doesn't really become known to the party until they start having visions of him, or talk to the trickster gods - quite late in the module.

The Yellow banner will only really become known to the party when they start finding their bodies. You could foreshadow that by having people in the city mention that particular adventuring party, but there are quite a few expeditions that left from the port city and never returned.

 

[CapnZapp]

Yeah it does seem that the DM is supposed to weave it in, but to be honest I’m not sure how else it could be done? Each location has an NPC or tablet to provide the exposition? That’s why I think the guide is the ideal deliverer of the legends as they travel the lands...

What I would have wanted is clear bi-directional references each time a piece of info is given (to the DM):

Not just:
Here is the Legend of NN.

But also:
Here are all the places and people that can tell it to the adventurers: AA Temple page 11, BB Elf page 22, CC ruins page 33,...

In this specific case, however, I'm talking about foreshadowing.

Learning some fact BEFORE you need it.

That doesn't mean the players have to make careful notes or remember stuff. The info can (and should) still be obtainable when you need it, only not just then.

Foreshadowing is the nice feeling when the players go "yeah... Didn't we hear about the nine trickster gods over at that mad monkey... Or was it in the temple of doom...?"

It gives good texture to an adventure. It makes the place come alive. It hints at a much more complex and rich world where lots of stuff is going on, rather than a world where you're only spoon-fed things you'll need right away...



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[CapnZapp]

Hmm. Off the top of my head:
Artus Cimber is the source for Mezro, Ras Nsi etc. Mezro was a sort of "hidden city" so wasn't general knowledge IIRC. All of the Port will know of the undead released by Ras Nsi, but may not know where they came from.

Most Chultans will know of Ubtao no longer responding. The story of the trickster gods may be known by the sages and historians in the city such as some of the priests, the well-read merchant princes, and the aaracocra in their temple.
Likewise the history of Omu, but its not general knowledge that the heir still lives except by the aaracocra. Mazes are sort of sacred to Ubtao, and a tribe of minotaur's were involved in the construction and guarding of Omu because of their liking of them.
Otherwise the minotaur involvement is evident from some of the skeletons in Omu itself.

The Red Wizards are keeping a low profile I think. The first inkling is the introduction to the head priest for divinations, but they're not too obvious about it I think.

The Ytepka society is a mostly secret society. Their symbols are known, and introduced to the party in some of the port side quests, but I don't think that members are very open about their membership or the goals etc of the society.

Acererak's involvement doesn't really become known to the party until they start having visions of him, or talk to the trickster gods - quite late in the module.

The Yellow banner will only really become known to the party when they start finding their bodies. You could foreshadow that by having people in the city mention that particular adventuring party, but there are quite a few expeditions that left from the port city and never returned.

Okay. Thanks.

I guess your reply boils down to:

"No."

(As in, "no, the writers have almost completely ignored foreshadowing, you're on your own, there are no early references to the Omu legends specified in the module itself"?)

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