The Aielund Saga is a Campaign created by Savant1974 (Stephen Nowland) for NWN1 as is widely regarded as one of the finest fan-made campaigns for NWN. The campaign is spread across 4 Acts, with act 4 comprising of three separate modules and the first Act Nature Abhors a Vacuum first uploaded on 15/02/2003 (d/m/y). The scale of the campaign is similar to that of the Original Campaign, with the exception that the level range is from LV1-40 instead of LV1-20. The campaign is also available and playable on NWN:EE. It was one of the first Campaigns to be featured under Curated Content by Beamdog in 2021.
MAJOR SPOILERS FROM HERE ON
Details of specific quests can be found at http://stephenlnowland.com.au/savant/act1.html.
Act I - Nature Abhors A Vacuum[]
"In the Kingdom of Aielund, trouble is brewing. While the King leads an army against enemies in the far west, the poorly-protected realm is under attack from brigands, goblinoids, and barbarians from the east. And rumours of a conspiracy are growing as the remaining military forces do little to stem the tide. Into this vacuum of power steps a small band of daring individuals, who must try to keep the region intact while tracking down the conspirators who seek to divide up the land for themselves."
Description from the NWN Vault
Plot
On entry into the module, the player finds themselves in their bedroom at the Bracksford Inn, various starter items are found in the chests surrounding the player, who then makes their way downstairs to the main Inn room where they can find companions.
When exiting the Inn, the player finds the town of Bracksford is flooded by a storm. This is part of the Ironlord prophecy that is later revealed in Act IV part 2. All the town gates are closed to keep the village safe from neighboring conflicts and problems that the player will latter solve in due course of Act 1. The player has the opportunity to gain extra experience by clearing out a barn full of rats (a nod to the beginning of Baldor's Gate) and to make a choice about a man camping within a farmers barn. Completing these quests usually results in a level up's worth of XP.
The player will then complete quests given by the Mayor of Bracksford to progress the main story, including the recovery of a debt which gives the player access to the southern areas, delivering a message and the optional quest of returning lost iron to the Blacksmith in Bracksford, which in turn gives the player access to more items and improves the appraisal chance of the merchant. The player then goes north to clear out the barricade set up by the Bandits. This gives access to the Calespur ranges and the town of Culdeny, which provides the second major hub for side quests in the module.
This section of the module focuses on the clearing of humanoid bugbear caves and another mysterious cave accessible via the Calespur Ranges, both of which are linked at their deepest parts and separated by a Wyvern which the player must defeat. Once completed, the player is sent off to the east, where an opportunity arises to acquire unique armor and weapons from a side quest. The Barbarian area features a scripted hazard where the player will take frost damage every round, unless they equip one of the specific cloaks that can be purchased from the clothing merchant in Bracksford.
The player will have almost no chance to defeat the tribe head on, so instead will likely take the route around the side of the tribal area, defeating a few wolfs in the process and accessing the barbarian lair from there. At the bottom of the lair, are two henchmen who seem to be planning an attack on Bracksford. On completion, the player returns to Bracksford too late, as the siege has begun. Both this and a goblin tunnel being dug under Culdeny are linked as well as a suspicious letter than can be found on one of the goblins within the tunnels.
The final quests of the module focus on rescuing the princess and getting her to safety. This will involve defeating hired henchmen, infiltrating tunnels, and the base of the assailants.
The final boss of the module is Robert Black, the leader of the assault on Culdeny. He rides on horseback and is accompanied by many hired henchmen. The player will benefit from potion buffs, and using the catapult when possible combined with careful party management. Once completed you reach Culdeny and continue your leave upon a ship destined for Fairloch.
At this point, the player should reclaim any equipment from their companions if they so wish to do so.
Act II - Defender of the Crown[]
"Fairloch - the majestic capital of Aielund, which has stood for over two hundred years, through war and strife. But all is not well in the City of Justice. With the King away and only Princess Criosa to represent the royal family, shadowy conspirators are seeking to kill her and take the throne of Fairloch for themselves. You and your companions must delve into the heart of the city, brave assassination attempts and evil from beyond the grave while you investigate the real reason behind the war in the west, and discover an enemy far more sinister than the petty villains who seek to seize power...'"
Description from the NWN Vault
Plot
Act II begins in the bowls of the ship, having set sale from Culdeny on voyage to Fairloch. A pirate vessel attacks the ship, forcing the player character to confront and defeat the Captain of the pirate ship. The player character has an opportunity to ransack treasure from the deepest area of the ship, but must do so quickly in order to avoid strong fire traps. The player will return to their own ship and thus concluding the seafaring introduction to act II.
The Player Character will arrive in Fairloch where the initial task will comprise of uncovering conspiracies related to the attack of Culdeny. The Player character will be tasked with finding the whereabouts of the theives guild, venturing into the sewers.
The PC should stock on on healing kits and lesser restoration spells and potions as the sewers make almost constant checks against the players saving throws for poison, disease and other traps that can cause the PC to slip onto the floor for a few moments. The Sewers are filled with Gelatinous cubes, spiders and even a mummy.
The PC can find the entrance to the thieves guild after clearing spot check, so using search mode will come in helpful. The player enters the thieves guild and has the option to slay the thieves or follow a lead to the Assassins Guild, which will naturally take the PC there next.
The assassins guild is full of complex traps, a manticore, oozes and an iron golem. A mage PC will be of a great benefit here since the oozes and Iron golem soak up lots of damage and can be very difficult and strenuous to defeat, taking upwards of 10 minutes to complete.
The second layer of the Assassins Guild contain the assassins, most of which will use their sneak skills and benefit from sneak attacks. Some of these drop valuable weapons that can be collected and sold for a good profit at a local merchant. They also benefit from taking a single inventory space.
The PC will meet the leader of the Guild and a showdown will ensue, with the option to save the leader and take his equipment or to end the matter once and for all.
The encounter leads on to searches through noble homes, on the premise that a noble was responsible for paying the Assassins guild a great deal of money.
After searching several homes, intelligence is found to suggest an impending attack on the council chambers. The PC must race through the sewers to a secret entrance to the chambers, just in time for a large scale fight with various Assassins and monks.
Once completed, the player will re-meet the Lord of Fairloch who will then go on to discuss the Sceptre of Ages, that can be used to defeat the Ironlord. This essentially opens the city gates and allows the PC to explore the wilderness outside Fairloch.
Act III - Return of the Ironlord[]
"With the city of Fairloch safe for the time being, and the Royal family secure at last, you turn your attention now to the West, to King Seamus and the Aielund military in it's struggle to defeat the Ironlord. All seems to be going to plan, until the ancient monster breaks free of it's century-old prison and embarks upon a single-minded quest for domination of the land. With the countryside awash with creatures of all kinds seeking to flee the coming onslaught, you and your companions must stave off hordes of monsters, confront old enemies, and search for relics from the distant past, all the while seeking allies to aid in the final clash against the Ironlord. But before you confront it, you must learn the answer to a question of singular importance: How do you kill that which cannot be killed?"
Description from the NWN Vault
Plot
Act IV Part 1- The Fall of Aielund[]
"It has been two years since the Battle of Fort Highmarch, and in that time fears about the King's newfound power have slowly come to fruition. Aielund is at constant war with it's neighbors, but with all sides weary and spent, the war is at a stalemate with no end to the suffering in sight. And with King Seamus slowly losing his grip on reality, something must be done.
A rebellious faction is growing in the land, led by the King's own daughter, Criosa. Somehow, you and the others must find a way of removing the King from the throne before his power-hungry madness leads to the destruction of the entire Kingdom."
Description from the NWN Vault
Plot
Part 2[]
"After the defeat of the Archmage Auberon and his forces, your party follows the mercenary Robert Black to a Tusone military outpost to set in motion the daring plan devised by you and King Osric of Tusone. The aim of this plan is nothing short of the complete liberation of Aielund and the destruction of the Ironlord.
Your party will hire mercenaries in it's travels across the breadth of Aielund, battle the scourge of the underworld, and unite Aielund's varied enemies in a singular cause to defeat your greatest adversary. But as with all things, even victory carries with it a price..."
Description from the NWN Vault
Plot
Part 3[]
"Terinus the Black, former King's wizard and the man responsible for the war,
reveals to you the terrible truth of your situation, and the legendary foes that you are about to confront. Failure here will result in the total elimination of Aielund by powers beyond your comprehension.
You and your companions must walk the very planes of existence in a desperate search for the power needed to stop the coming onslaught, confront horrors and wonders from beyond the stars, and ultimately assail the ancients in the very heart of their stronghold. The final battle draws near, and only the bravest and boldest will survive."
Description from the NWN Vault
Plot
Gameplay[]
The Aielund Saga features a semi-linear gameplay style, similar to that of Neverwinter Nights. The first three modules of the game are designed to allow the player to become acquainted with the setting of Feydwiir while Act 4 encompasses the entire scope of the regions explores in Acts 1-3. The first two modules are structured very similarly, both cities are in lockdown and require the player to solve various quests within the cities to be allowed to leave and explore the environs, very similar to Darkness over Daggerford.
Many of the battles within the game range from difficult to extremely challenging and require good party management skills, often requiring the player to collect as much gold, equipment and experience as possible.
An example would be the loss of player inventory which was experienced in both Hordes of the Underdark and Pirates of the Sword Coast. Comparatively, The way in which the Aielund Saga implemented this mechanic far later in the game compared to previous modules, since the player begins building their inventory and gold from Act 1, so to have it all removed so much later in the campaign gives the loss of player inventory more meaning. Pirates of the Sword Coast however, only implemented this mechanic shortly after the Neverwinter Docks area after at most, several hours of optional gameplay and collecting fairly average equiptment. Hordes of the Underdark did this almost immediately so was not far different than starting a new character. Placing the mechanic so much further in the structure of the campaign also ensures that the player has some proficiency in fighting or spell casting to defeat various enemies without or with minimal equipment.
The player should invest in lots of Healing Potions, Resurrection and Raise Dead Scrolls to manage their party healing. Healing Kits or lesser/greater restoration potions should also be purchased in abundance as there are many poison and disease effects within the campaign, and the nature of some areas will easily require in excess of 30 healing kits or potions to clear.
The Aielund Saga is one of the few campaigns to cover the entire level compass from Level 1 to 40, though likely finishing from levels 35 upwards.
Tactical playing[]
Throughout the campaign, The Aielund Saga rewards the player for playing tactically and making good choices. For example, in Act 1, the player finds themselves in some rural fields filled with hired Tiger henchmen. The player will be rewarded with an easier fight if they circumnavigate the map and attack their base from the top down, slowly drawing out the enemies one by one, instead of taking them all on at once. This tactic also proves helpful in other areas of the game such as the lower levels Assassins Guild. Another tactic that works well includes using a battle arena to run around, allowing the hostile enemy to chase your player character, allowing you when distanced, to resurrect fallen companions at full health, to heal yourself and perform other actions.
The campaign takes many of the staple plot building inspirations from other premium modules such as survival Pirates of the Sword Coast and the loss of player inventory and re-tweaks them in different places and ways to make them applicable and often more successful to The Aielund Saga.
The Aielund Saga triumphs in that very few other premium, expansions and even the official campaign, rewards the tactical player to the same effect, rarely if so, by allowing the player to purposely find solutions to various mechanics of the NWN engine and hostile A.I in order to progress the campaign.
Death System and Resting[]
The Aielund Saga features a permanent death system of which its severity varies depending on the module. In Act 1, the great wyrm [?name?] who guards the gate where the Ironlord armor is safeguarded, is able to resurrect the player at a cost to their XP and Gold. This continues in the second Act but with varying degree of success, sometimes the player will not be resurrected and will die permanently, requiring a reloaded save. In Act 3, the entry cut scene shows the Ironlord Escaping and killing the Wyrm. Thus from act 3, it is no longer possible to be resurrected on death.
This forces the player to think more tactically and throughout the campaign, the purchase of healing kits, healing potions, raise dead and Resurrection scrolls becomes increasingly essential. In Act 1, it is very unlikely that the player will be able to afford full Resurrection scrolls. In Act IV part 3, there is very little opportunity to buy these healing options so it is strongly recommended that the player purchases as many as is affordable in Act IV part 2 or Act IV part 1. There is no incentive to stock up any earlier because of the beginning events of Act IV.
Gameplay is made more manageable if the player prioritizes their Player Character over their companions to manage their healing, by giving out healing potions and retaining healing kits, raise dead and Resurrection spells for application when required.
Resting uses a system where it is not possible to rest on a regular basis, instead the player once rested must wait a certain amount of time until they can rest again, all being that they are in a safe place to rest. Most of the city areas within the campaign are not safe for resting and will require the player to find a local Inn.
Conversations and Dialogue[]
Conversations in The Aielund Saga take inspiration from Darkness over Daggerford and Baldur's Gate, with a clear influence of banter styled dialogue and also offering a multitude of opportunities for the player to role-play and develop their character. Dialogue often shows how these different responses will affect the character. This style of dialogue remains consistent throughout the campaign.
Trivia[]
- Stephen Nowland published a series of novels based on The Aielund Saga.
Known Bugs and issues[]
- Stoneguard Keep can often cause frame-rate drops, however, the frame rate was improved drastically in a recent update for NWN:EE
- Looting the Dwarven corpses within Stoneguard Keep in Act 2, can cause frequent crashes.
- SOLUTION: Loot a maximum of 3 corpses at a time, then manage your inventory, by placing heavy armors into magical bags of holding [purchased in Fairloch and in Stoneguard merchant] and other items within the inventories of your companions. When the parties inventory is full, sell the loot at your preferred merchant. NOTE: Corpses on the bottom level of the dungeon will disappear, if you leave the area, so make sure to loot all the corpses you can before leaving the area.
- SOLUTION: Loot a maximum of 3 corpses at a time, then manage your inventory, by placing heavy armors into magical bags of holding [purchased in Fairloch and in Stoneguard merchant] and other items within the inventories of your companions. When the parties inventory is full, sell the loot at your preferred merchant. NOTE: Corpses on the bottom level of the dungeon will disappear, if you leave the area, so make sure to loot all the corpses you can before leaving the area.
References and Links[]
- Link to a detailed walk-though/blog by Lilura1 https://lilura1.blogspot.com/2021/01/Aielund-Saga-Enhanced-Edition-Walkthrough-Guide-Review-Part-I-Builds-Companions-Items-Weapons-Install-Act-One-Two-Three-Four.html
- Link to The Aielund Saga's official website http://stephenlnowland.com.au/savant/world.html