Tomb of Annihilation Preview: Port Nyanzaru and Soshenstar River

In the first post of our extensive “Tomb of Annihilation” preview series, we are going to look into the new social hub and adventure zone. Completing the initial story line will take players to Port Nyanzaru, a small port city and basically the last true outpost in Chult after the Spellplague destroyed Mezro. The associated Soshenstar River is not directly accessible from the overworld map. You need to head to the south gate in Nyanzaru to travel to the jungles.

Port Nyanzaru

First of all, Port Nyanzaru is a full-fledged social hub. It has all the vendors and utility to fully park your toons there. So players don’t need to go back to Protector’s Enclave unless they want to pick up quests. This fact separates it from Icewind Dale, which had most stuff, but not everything. The most notable absentee was the bank of course.

This setup makes sense because you can just park your toons nearby while you play Module 12. On the map I have also marked some special places that help you navigate and find module relevant places. In the north there’s the Merchant Prince’s Villa where you pick up daily and weekly quests from Wakanga O’tamu. There’s also a bait vendor (yes Fishing again!) and several armor vendors for the new equipment.

The only downside of this setup is that pug lfgs might be further scattered across multiple zones. Compiling a group could mean posting in Protector’s Enclace, Sea of Moving Ice and Port Nyanzaru, depending on the dungeon.

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Soshenstar River

Taking the south gate exit you’ll be able to explore Soshenstar River, a massive jungle map that’s both beautiful and dangerous. The map is divided by the titular river on which you can use your boats and fishing poles! VIP signpost will come in handy on this map because the quest givers in Camp Vengeance are on the opposite site of the entrance.

Scrying Stones

I found two Scrying Stone stones so far. I’ll update the map if I happen to run into the third one. Otherwise this is something you have to figure out yourself.

Fauna

One thing is certain: The devs didn’t joke around when talking about difficulty. Lower level characters will certainly have their hands full with all kinds of dinosaurs. The other mobs are usual pushovers, but all Raptors are annoying, deadly or both. They do not only hit comparably hard, but have an Ambush ability that briefly stuns you on your Mount. Combined with an insane aggro range it’s sometimes impossible to sneak by even on a legendary steed.

If you already run into trouble beating Compys, Deinonychuses or Velocyraptors you should definitely stay away from the bigger Allosauruses or Tyrannosaurs. These are not only stronger but also control immune.  I had most success fighting the zone with a MoF Control Wizard, which combines great control and survivability with decent enough damage. It’s however not like endgame toons really have to worry. You might want to take a more careful approach nonetheless.

Flora

The devs put a lot of work into the zone and it shows. It’s visually stunning and makes sense in terms of feel and theme. In the Yuan-Ti and Batiri area as well as around Camp Vengeance a few mobs less would have done, but that’s basically all I have as “complaint”.

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That’s our preview of the new social hub and adventure zone that are coming with module 12 “Tomb of Annihilation”! What’s your take on the environment, look and feel? Share your thoughts in the comments below or visit the corresponding thread on our message board!

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j0Shi

j0Shi plays the Neverwinter MMORPG since the open BETA in 2013 and is a regular contributor to the blog and the whole UN:Project. Originally a Guardian Fighter, he has built up ALTs of all classes and plays on BIS/near-BIS level.

3 thoughts on “Tomb of Annihilation Preview: Port Nyanzaru and Soshenstar River

  • June 19, 2017 at 7:47 am
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    “you should definitely stay away from the bigger Allosauruses or Tyrannosaurs. These are not only stronger but also control immune. ”
    They should be immune, but as many of us have noticed they are not.
    http://www.arcgames.com/en/forums/neverwinter#/discussion/comment/12965229
    Several pets and encounter powers can easily keep a TRex flopping on the deck like a newly-caught trout.
    Probably unintended and will be fixed by release.

    Otherwise, great summary. Thanks

  • July 26, 2017 at 9:27 am
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    Last Scrying Stones is on Position -1047/ -493

    • July 30, 2017 at 8:48 am
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      Cheers!

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