Neverwinter Nights 2: Westgate Weekly Spotlight

The official NWN 2 forums are now home to a weekly "Mysteries of Westgate spotlight" thread. This week's is entitled "The Legend of the Quelzarn" and says:

Curse it all! Wouldn't ye know we'd be attacked by the Serpent of the Harbor! Blast Umberlee, Queen of the Deeps, for that foul beast and our even fouler luck! - Captain Ferro Merrig

The mages of Faerūn say the race of gigantic eel-like serpents known as the quelzarn are of magical origin, perhaps the result of long-ago experimentation by the mages of Unther; certainly, the beasts were hunted there. Between 30 and 40 feet long, the quelzarn are rapacious, agile, and skilled hunters known to be willing to eat anything, even carrion if desperate. Highly resistant to the foul waters of busy harbors and vast swamps alike, they are adept at using the cover given by intense pollution to mask their approach until the moment of strike.

Westgate's extensive network of sewers and catacombs are whispered to house numerous hidden temples and shrines, a coven of liches, and even a bloodthirsty court of vampires said to be descended from the original Night King, but these are, so far as is known, only rumors. What most definitely is not rumor is the infestation of the city's partly-flooded sewers by the quelzarn. More terrifyingly, these often make their way into the harbor, where they pluck unlucky sailors from the decks of ships.

Yet in Westgate, when sailors talk in hushed tones of "the quelzarn," they don't mean the generic variety. No, they mean the Great Serpent of the Harbor. The few who have caught glimpses, and yet lived, speak of a beast of truly massive proportions - 60 feet at least - swimming at a rapid rate just below the surface of the harbor waters. There are tales, most often followed by whispered prayers to the Queen of the Deeps, of entire ships being dragged beneath the waves underneath massive coils of scale, fang, and muscle. Woe be to any who have the misfortune of confronting Westgate's so-called "Seafood Sampler."

Developer Questions

Question (JaegerBane): Will it be possible to use a pre-made epic character in MoW? I realize that the challenge will be lacking etc., etc; I'm not bothered about that. Will such an option be available out of the box, or will it be modifiable to allow lvl30 chars in the same fashion as modules and the OC, using the toolset?

Russ Davis, Writer (aka Tiberius209): I see no reason why a 30th level character can not be used technically. Whether that allows for a fun game is another question entirely.

Question (Crispy): Are we going to have any kind of "home base" in MoW? I realize that our characters are new to the city, and are initially there to investigate the curse, but having some place to hang your hat, so to speak, can help with ambience, immersion and interest, IMO. Maybe just a semi-permanent room at an inn or something (which had better have more than one bed!)?

Russ Davis, Writer (aka Tiberius209): There are some places where you will spend a significant amount of time, and these might begin to feel a bit like home, but we don't want to be misleading here. There's nothing that could be even slightly construed as a stronghold.

Question (Frith5): Is there a chance this module will be 'continued' in any way, shape, or form in later Adventure Packs by Ossian? Will the 'ending' be left open enough possibly to allow for further story in another pack, or are you done with Westgate and all the characters in this AP?

Russ Davis, Writer (aka Tiberius209): We'll never say never, but right now there are no plans to continue this adventure in any future Ossian products. That said, the multiple endings are all open enough that you can easily send your character off on future adventures of other makes.

Next Spotlight: Cosmopolitan Westgate

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