[Naranjan] Mythic Vistas: Mindshadows + Monsters of the Mind

[Big Mac]

I asked about The Star of Kolhapur in another topic and Tim Baker suggested that Mythic Vistas: Mindshadows was also based on Indian themes.

I had heard of this campaign setting before, and heard that (like Hamunaptra) it was set on the same world as Freeport, but I don''t think I realised it had an Indian connection before. I think I had focused on the "Mind" thing.

Here is what Amazon says about Mythic Vistas: Mindshadows:

Mythic Vistas: Mindshadows (d20 Fantasy Roleplaying Campaign Setting) Paperback – September 20, 2005
by Kevin Brennan (Author), James Maliszewski (Author)


On the distant island-continent of Naranjan, brave adventurers study the psychic arts under powerful gurus, battle treacherous yuan-ti in the depths of ancient dwarven ruins, and evade elven cannibal tribes in the tropical jungle. Third in the Mythic Vistas series from Green Ronin, Mindshadows blends the rich legends of Southeast Asia with furious martial arts action inspired by the Psionics Handbook. Mindshadows features: The history of Naranjan, from the Mythic Age to the present day. 13 prestige classes, including the guru and serpentine assassin. A setting map and gazetteer. Over 30 feats, including psionic feats like WarriorA's Trance and Weapon Bond. Advice on running Mindshadows campaigns. Full details on the races and cultures of Naranjan, including castes, religions, and more. The truth about serpent people and yuan-ti revealed! New equipment, including weapons, armor, and the dreaded juggernauts. Conversion notes for using the Mindscapes system, written by Bruce Cordell himself. Full compatibility with Green Ronin's Freeport, Master Class, and Races of Renown lines, and the companion volume to Mindshadows, Monsters of the Mind. The first true psionic setting for the d20 System, Mindshadows can be dropped easily into any existing campaign. From the decadent city-states of the Spice Coast, to the treacherous capital of the Sudarshan Empire, adventure awaits-for those brave enough to traverse this exotic land.

Sure enough, it does mention "Southeast Asia" there, but it was the psionic thing that i noticed before. I'm not sure what the deal with "Mindscapes" is, as I don't have that product. But it looks like owning that might help with a Mindshadows campaign.

Tim Emrick replied to Tim Baker and said that Monsters of the Mind is also set in the Mindshadows campaign:

Monsters Of The Mind Paperback – February 14, 2006
by Kevin Brennan (Author), James Maliszewski (Author, Artist), Morgan Peer (Author), & 1 more


Asuras, dorje golems, makaras, thoughtforms, yali. These and many more exotic creatures await you in Monsters of the Mind. Developed by Arcana: Societies of Magic authors Kevin Brennan and James Maliszewski, this book presents more than 50 psionic creatures for use in any d20 fantasy campaign. In addition to accurate stats and evocative illustrations, each monster's entry includes notes on using it with Naranjan, the setting of the Mythic Vistas sourcebook Mindshadows. From the tiny Vinn Mohar to the gargantuan Many-Headed Beast of Ketasha, Monsters of the Mind has a challenge for every adventuring party. Monsters of the Mind features: Updated 3.5 stats for all monsters Challenge ratings from 1/4 to 21 Psionic variants of classic monsters like the aboleth and yuan-ti Beautiful art from Toren "Macbin" Atkinson, Drew Baker, Kent Burles, Kevin Crossley, Dennis Detwiller, and James Ryman A brief introduction to Naranjan Whether used on its own or in conjunction with Mindshadows, Monsters of the Mind is a must for any psionic campaign. NOTE: Monsters of the Mind uses the 3.5 rules, except for psionics--the 3.5 psionics rules did not exist at the time of publication, so this book uses the 3.0 psionics rules.

So it looks like this setting was developed just as 3.0 was turning into 3.5. Does anyone know if Green Ronin ever released an update document, to bring Monsters of the Mind (and probably Mythic Vistas: Mindshadows) fully up to 3.5?

I know that Tim Emrick has these books. Does anyone else have them?

What do you think of the campaign setting?

[Tim Baker]

I'm not sure what the deal with "Mindscapes" is, as I don't have that product. But it looks like owning that might help with a Mindshadows campaign.

I had to google Mindscapes. Is there a connection between Mindshadows and Mindscapes, other than their both being related to psionics and written for D&D 3.0?

[timemrick]

I'm not sure what the deal with "Mindscapes" is, as I don't have that product. But it looks like owning that might help with a Mindshadows campaign.

The conversion consists of a couple of sidebars. Apparently, Mindscapes: A Psion's Guise uses a different psionic combat system, and doesn't use power points for psionics use, but MIndshadows' authors claim it is easy to use with the official [v.3.0] psionics rules.

So it looks like this setting was developed just as 3.0 was turning into 3.5. Does anyone know if Green Ronin ever released an update document, to bring Monsters of the Mind (and probably Mythic Vistas: Mindshadows) fully up to 3.5?

Robert Schwalb did a v.3.5 update for Monsters of the Mind, which is available from the Green Ronin free downloads page. AFAIK, there was never one done for Mindshadows.

[Big Mac]

I'm not sure what the deal with "Mindscapes" is, as I don't have that product. But it looks like owning that might help with a Mindshadows campaign.

I had to google Mindscapes. Is there a connection between Mindshadows and Mindscapes, other than their both being related to psionics and written for D&D 3.0?

I have no idea about it, and Mindscapes was published by a different publsiher (Sword & Sorcery Studios/White Wolf). But I do know that a lot of the 3rd Party Publishers shared Open Game Content written for 3.0 and 3.5. The specific copy of the Open Game Licence in the back of Mindshadows would state if it used anything from Mindscapes in Section 15, as you have to list the copyright line(s) from every OGC source you take content from.

If I get this book myself, I'll have a look at the Section 15 to see if it is there.

[Big Mac]

I'm not sure what the deal with "Mindscapes" is, as I don't have that product. But it looks like owning that might help with a Mindshadows campaign.

The conversion consists of a couple of sidebars. Apparently, Mindscapes: A Psion's Guise uses a different psionic combat system, and doesn't use power points for psionics use, but MIndshadows' authors claim it is easy to use with the official [v.3.0] psionics rules.

Thanks for the context. If it was OGC, I don't know why they didn't just copy that bit over.

I'm guessing that - if Mythic Vistas: Mindshadows came out at the tail end of the 3.0 era and Monsters of the Mind came out so early in the 3.5 era that the psionics rules had not been published - that the designers might have felt that the 3.0 psionics system was a bit outdated. If that was the case (and I'm not sure it was) the Mindscapes rules might have seemed new and fresh.

But, if I'm wrong, it could just be that the designers liked Mindscapes and designed the setting to work around those rules.

So it looks like this setting was developed just as 3.0 was turning into 3.5. Does anyone know if Green Ronin ever released an update document, to bring Monsters of the Mind (and probably Mythic Vistas: Mindshadows) fully up to 3.5?

Robert Schwalb did a v.3.5 update for Monsters of the Mind, which is available from the Green Ronin free downloads page. AFAIK, there was never one done for Mindshadows.

Thanks for that link. If I ever get around to doing an "Other Naranjan Websits (& Free Downloads)" topic, I'll have to include that one.