Do we think it'll ever happen? I don't like buying multiple versions of the same book, so I'm holding out for Guide to Drakkenheim to come to DnD Beyond. Is this a pointless wait? Will it simply never arrive?
3 of the 5 factions seem to be easy for me as a DM to make them approachable so the players engage with them, but the Queen's Men and Followers seem more antagonistic and difficult to sympathise with.
My party seems to like the virtuous goals of the Silver Order and the Hooded Lanterns, and seems willing to engage with the Amethyst Academy, but they seem to find the Queen's Man and Followers more extremist and irrational.
Can you give any suggestions as to how I might tempt my players to fairly consider them as potential allies? It's still early on at level 4, so I don't want to firmly establish any factions as heroes or villains.
Thanks in advance for any advice!
This has been a daunting task for me, because it's my first campaign as a DM. We began with In Search of the Smuggler's Secrets as an intro to Drakkenheim, with a natural narrative spot to end it early if they weren't having fun. We're playing in DnD Beyond VTT, which isn't perfect but it's been fairly easy to pick up and play.
After 3 sessions we completed the intro adventure, but my players enjoyed it so much that they didn't even question continuing on.
I think there are many reasons for Drakkenheim being a compelling setting, but my party really engaged with the lore at session 0. They chose relevant backgrounds, personal goals and backstories which tied them into the setting. I was honest when I thought things should be tweaked to fit better, and they were very open to my modifications.
We're at session 7 now, and they've met all the factions, interacted with the deep dreggs, one has communed with the Duchess, they've explored 3 entrances into the inner city, interacted with many NPCs in Emberwood village, and each of them has made meaningful advancement in their personal stories.
We all want to just pick it up and play as often as possible because there's so much content to play with, and it's been easy to improvise within the setting because the factions and personalities of the world are so well defined!
Thank you to Ghostfire Gaming and the Dungeon Dudes for producing Dungeons of Drakkenheim. Hopefully we get Sebastian Crowe's Guide on DnD Beyond in the near future!