Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Talisman 04-11-08, 11:31 PM	So I had this idea for a campaign. Having no idea when I'll get to actually run it (that's the problem with a gaming group composed of 5 GMs), I thought I'd share it with the creative minds here on the forums, for inspiration and critiques. To Reign in Hell The central concept of this campiagn is summed up in the title: you're in Hell. The Abyss, actually, but "Hell" has a better ring to it (and I'll be using a homebrew cosmology anyway). The PCs start out as wretched prisoners of the demons, laboring at various menial and/or demeaning tasks. They have no idea why they're in Hell; being generally decent hero-material, they certainly shouldn't have been condemned to the Pit. All of them remember their lives, but not their deaths - the last bit is just blurry, and then they remember being kicked around by a vrock. A new prisoner joins the slave gang - he has a savage head wound, but is put to work nonetheless. Montage of dreary, demon-related activities. I'll give the PCs a chance to engineer a prison break, but if they don't come up with anything workable, HeadWound Guy takes action (he being the GMPC). He has tattoos on his hands that act as gloves of storing, and he has two adamantine longswords concealed there. At a critical moment, he produces them, tosses one to the nearest PC warrior-type, and begins cutting chains. After the prison break/fight/escape, HeadWound Guy leads the escapees to a cave hidden nearby, which is stocked with provisions and some basic equipment. He reveals that he was sent by agents of Heaven to free those wrongly imprisoned in Hell. He allowed himself to be captured in order to free the PCs. Unfortunately, the head wound he took has affected his memory, and he now only remembers bits and pieces of the details of his mission. Ideally, this forces the PCs to be more proactive, while still letting me use him as an occasional plot hook/exposition dispenser. The PCs now embark on a campaign of (1) killing demons, (2) rescuing prisoners, and (3) searching for the McGuffin. They will ultimately learn that the planes themselves have been rocked by a battle between the gods, weakening the planar barriers and allowing the agents of Hell to claim souls not rightfully theirs. The only way to fix this state of affairs is to reassemble the Genesis Crystal/McGuffin, which was shattered during the deific conflict and shards of it scattered across Hell. That's what I've got for now. Does it sound interesting? Frustrating? Cool? What about HeadWound Guy: yes or no? Does the plot make sense? Feedback!
AngeloftheNight 04-12-08, 10:18 AM	me like
Delfedd 04-12-08, 11:11 AM	I vote no on Headwound guy. Yes on someone with tatoos of storing, but no on letting him live and follow the PCs around. He's probably killed/tortured by the demons and eventually becoming an NPC Biggest two problems with this campaign is that there aren't going to be any weapons that the pcs can use to overcome the damage reduction of the demons, and all the pcs should look like grubs. Or perhaps they're not dead?
Talisman 04-12-08, 01:59 PM	I vote no on Headwound guy. Yes on someone with tatoos of storing, but no on letting him live and follow the PCs around. He's probably killed/tortured by the demons and eventually becoming an NPC So, maybe have him pop weapons with his tattoos of storing, give directions to the hidden cache of supplies - then die/get captured in the escape? I should perhaps mention that we usually have GMPCs in my gaming group, no matter who's running, and everyone's cool with it. Biggest two problems with this campaign is that there aren't going to be any weapons that the pcs can use to overcome the damage reduction of the demons That's why there will be a couple silver weapons in the cache. Eventually the PCs will be able to find some holy, silver weapons...after all, demonic assassins need a way to beat their targets' DR. and all the pcs should look like grubs. Or perhaps they're not dead? Bingo. The PCs aren't CE people who died and had their souls dragged down to Hell. They were heroic adventurers who got demon-napped in the upheaval of the godswar, and the trauma/magical energies/plot device screwed with their memories.
Eldritch_Lord 04-13-08, 07:26 PM	I like it; adventures in the Lower Planes are some of my favorites. So, maybe have him pop weapons with his tattoos of storing, give directions to the hidden cache of supplies - then die/get captured in the escape? I should perhaps mention that we usually have GMPCs in my gaming group, no matter who's running, and everyone's cool with it. I'd say have the DMPC take some of the other prisoners and lead most of the demons on a merry chase to let the PCs escape. This (A) explains why thousands upon thousands of demons don't descend on the PCs, since they're already occupied, and (B) lets the PCs take the lead in the beginning, so you can bring the DMPC back later (say he escaped from all of them) while not letting the PCs depend on his lead, and (C) insert a possibility that the DMPC was compromised while he was away (plot hooks!).
talmor 04-14-08, 04:54 PM	Maybe have the GMPC be really, really wounded when he shows up/during his imprisonment/during the escape? Like, he won't be able to walk? This keeps him from leading the players around, but can still function as a plot hook generator/exposition guy...sort of like Prof. X or something. All in all, not a bad setup for an interesting campaign.
Aneutralshadeofblack 04-15-08, 09:46 AM	Instead of killing HWG off, I think you'd be better off having him lapse into a coma once the PCs have reached their safe haven and he's explained his mission - that way, there's the added problem of curing him or not curing him (moral dilemma).