Aimed squarely and exclusively at potential GMs, this really should not be read if you want to play a character in the Zeitgeist Adventure Path. Covering an overview of the whole campaign it would ruin a player's fun, and possibly that of the whole group. For in a campaign such as this one, there are underlying strands and themes that the GM needs to understand but which will not become apparant to players until later on, and even then probably only when viewed through hindsight!
The whole thing is basically summarised in a couple of sentences. I've read them now. I'm doomed to running this, not playing in it!
That out of the way, there's a whole bunch of 'key terms' - names, events, ideas from the history and geography of the setting, as well as outlines of major political and philosophical power blocs and so on. For this is very much a campaign of ideas, of seizing power not just with the sword but with the mind as well. Oh, and the pivotal antagonist is revealed as well, although he does not actually appear until quite late on in the campaign.
Next comes an idea of the sequence of events, a synopsis of what will take place during the course of the entire campaign. The narrative arc is presented first, followed by analysis of individual adventures. There are also ideas for extracting bits if your preference is for a shorter campaign than would be involved in running the complete adventure path. As no gameplan, however well constructed, survives contact with your players there are some notes on how to maintain the overall arc even if a pivotal NPC is taken out of the picture prematurely. But for those who love the sort of alternate reality in which there is a lot going on, one in which the player-characters can exert an influence but only if they get involved and interact, this promises to be an absolute gem!
The next section deals with Running the Campaign. It's full of useful advice including certain things to keep in mind for guiding the long-term development of your characters and their resources and more on how to handle the Prestige system introduced in the Player's Guide. There's advice on the specialist aspects of running a long-playing mystery, too, as well as the way to handle the investigations that form much of the day-to-day events during the early stages of the campaign. Lots to think about as you plan and get yourself organised. In fact, you'll probably want to keep this ready to hand throughout at least the early stages of the campaign.
This is an excellent support document for what promises to be an amazing and memorable campaign. Indeed, if you prefer crafting your own campaigns, it's worth a look to get ideas on what sort of things you ought to be thinking about and planning in advance to raise your campaign to this standard!
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