Conflicting Parties [Archive] - Wizards Community

Conflicting Parties [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
HeartbreakerHabberdasher
11-06-06, 10:10 PM In D&D, every PC is usually an adventure. Every party goes to and fro slaying the oposition and saving the day. The Party always gets to be the hero's and save the day (save evil campaigns and the sort).

Are there ever more than one group of adventures saving the day, and thus sometimes conflicting to race for the glory?

I was thinking about it, and planning to do it, but I was just wondering if anyone has ever done something similar.
Platonix
11-06-06, 10:22 PM Usually there aren't two rival groups of PCs. Sometimes, however, the DM can throw in an NPC adventuring party for the PCs to interact with. There's a specific example in DMG II where the DM can feel free to give the party rogue who's fond of stealing things a little spotlight time by introducing a rival group of adventurers, and the rivals have already found the dungeon key and it's hanging from their fighter's belt in plain sight.

Another thing I've occasionally thought of is an adventuring party stumbling across the corpses of another party who failed earlier. This can happen two ways: either the PCs come across corpses, and the corpses might have useful items in them (see fighter with dungeon key in previous example), or the PCs might be the party that failed earlier. One interesting way for the DM to resolve a battle that goes awry and turns into a TPK is for another adventuring party to come along later and find the PC party, and the other party's cleric casts raise dead on at least one member of the PC party. Perhaps the other party wants information about the dangers you faced (after all, clearly something's in here that can kill an adventuring party) or they might just want more help getting through.
CharlieRock
11-06-06, 10:40 PM Sometimes we do a "PvP" (mini)campaign. We call them 'Killer' Campaigns :D
We roll our characters and start on one map or another. Then we try to accomplish our prearranged goal while simultaneously preventing the other players from theirs. The most elaborate was a LE character in an otherwise Good party. The scenario was he was betraying them and captured the guild house. He had several NPCs at his disposal. The rest of the party had to recapture the house (in general) and kill/capture the LE guy (specificly). :cool:
Myree
11-06-06, 10:57 PM I've always thought this would be an interesting concept to include, but never found the right opportunity. Well, except on one small occassion where the party "retreated" from a dungeon to level up, much to my disappointment. So, when they came back freshly powered (and now above some of the CR items I had spent a lot of time prepping for their old levels, they found another party had come through and "cleared out" large portions and left the empty chests, rotting corpses, a busted staff in the middle of a very large scorch-mark, etc. I still reused everything I had REALLY built for them, with just a little rework, of course -- just used it as a quick "think before you tick off the DM" on them and we were back to normal adventuring within half an hour.

Oh, and I recall either TSR or WotC (right around the take-over) had an experimental series of short fiction novels (set in the Realms, I believe) called something like the Double Diamond series. The basic concept was you could start the adventure with either of two groups, and then follow them back and forth between the two as they met, separated, and met again. I always meant to read them, but by the time I got around to it, couldn't find them. So, no idea how it really worked -- just an idea behind it.
CryoSilver
11-07-06, 02:17 AM We've done this before. It was quite fun (it was actually a Good party and an Evil party racing for the same artifact). In the end, the Evil party won, but not before losing one of their own.

I was the neutral rogue, fighting for the good party. At the end of the encounter, I used a scroll of Dimension Door to escape with the corpses of my teammates. The evil party followed, badly wounded. My final spit in their face was to use a wand of Ray of Frost to sneak attack the evil cleric as he ran out of the cave; I dealt exactly enough damage to kill him.
Gorteck
11-07-06, 04:17 AM Ive allways had other partys running around in my world ... i mean When the BAR says LOOKING FOR ADVENTURES to do something or another there must be clearly more then 1 party so i useoly make them and never realy play them all but i do sometimes pick a group of NPC to join the characters (Like old chars of mine or THERES) And it makes for an intrusting story and it allso lets them know Hey look theres Tobo my Half Orc Barbian! HOW YA DOING! tho they wouldnt REALY know them it just that i realy liked that ... tobo guy *Sniff* To bad i had to roll that Crit hit on that guy ... poor tobo ... anyways i allways have another Party or 3 around combosed of old Chars and one or 2 newer ones (Hey later on i might play them and not have to make a char Then!)

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
HeartbreakerHabberdasher 11-06-06, 10:10 PM	In D&D, every PC is usually an adventure. Every party goes to and fro slaying the oposition and saving the day. The Party always gets to be the hero's and save the day (save evil campaigns and the sort). Are there ever more than one group of adventures saving the day, and thus sometimes conflicting to race for the glory? I was thinking about it, and planning to do it, but I was just wondering if anyone has ever done something similar.
Platonix 11-06-06, 10:22 PM	Usually there aren't two rival groups of PCs. Sometimes, however, the DM can throw in an NPC adventuring party for the PCs to interact with. There's a specific example in DMG II where the DM can feel free to give the party rogue who's fond of stealing things a little spotlight time by introducing a rival group of adventurers, and the rivals have already found the dungeon key and it's hanging from their fighter's belt in plain sight. Another thing I've occasionally thought of is an adventuring party stumbling across the corpses of another party who failed earlier. This can happen two ways: either the PCs come across corpses, and the corpses might have useful items in them (see fighter with dungeon key in previous example), or the PCs might be the party that failed earlier. One interesting way for the DM to resolve a battle that goes awry and turns into a TPK is for another adventuring party to come along later and find the PC party, and the other party's cleric casts raise dead on at least one member of the PC party. Perhaps the other party wants information about the dangers you faced (after all, clearly something's in here that can kill an adventuring party) or they might just want more help getting through.
CharlieRock 11-06-06, 10:40 PM	Sometimes we do a "PvP" (mini)campaign. We call them 'Killer' Campaigns :D We roll our characters and start on one map or another. Then we try to accomplish our prearranged goal while simultaneously preventing the other players from theirs. The most elaborate was a LE character in an otherwise Good party. The scenario was he was betraying them and captured the guild house. He had several NPCs at his disposal. The rest of the party had to recapture the house (in general) and kill/capture the LE guy (specificly). :cool:
Myree 11-06-06, 10:57 PM	I've always thought this would be an interesting concept to include, but never found the right opportunity. Well, except on one small occassion where the party "retreated" from a dungeon to level up, much to my disappointment. So, when they came back freshly powered (and now above some of the CR items I had spent a lot of time prepping for their old levels, they found another party had come through and "cleared out" large portions and left the empty chests, rotting corpses, a busted staff in the middle of a very large scorch-mark, etc. I still reused everything I had REALLY built for them, with just a little rework, of course -- just used it as a quick "think before you tick off the DM" on them and we were back to normal adventuring within half an hour. Oh, and I recall either TSR or WotC (right around the take-over) had an experimental series of short fiction novels (set in the Realms, I believe) called something like the Double Diamond series. The basic concept was you could start the adventure with either of two groups, and then follow them back and forth between the two as they met, separated, and met again. I always meant to read them, but by the time I got around to it, couldn't find them. So, no idea how it really worked -- just an idea behind it.
CryoSilver 11-07-06, 02:17 AM	We've done this before. It was quite fun (it was actually a Good party and an Evil party racing for the same artifact). In the end, the Evil party won, but not before losing one of their own. I was the neutral rogue, fighting for the good party. At the end of the encounter, I used a scroll of Dimension Door to escape with the corpses of my teammates. The evil party followed, badly wounded. My final spit in their face was to use a wand of Ray of Frost to sneak attack the evil cleric as he ran out of the cave; I dealt exactly enough damage to kill him.
Gorteck 11-07-06, 04:17 AM	Ive allways had other partys running around in my world ... i mean When the BAR says LOOKING FOR ADVENTURES to do something or another there must be clearly more then 1 party so i useoly make them and never realy play them all but i do sometimes pick a group of NPC to join the characters (Like old chars of mine or THERES) And it makes for an intrusting story and it allso lets them know Hey look theres Tobo my Half Orc Barbian! HOW YA DOING! tho they wouldnt REALY know them it just that i realy liked that ... tobo guy Sniff To bad i had to roll that Crit hit on that guy ... poor tobo ... anyways i allways have another Party or 3 around combosed of old Chars and one or 2 newer ones (Hey later on i might play them and not have to make a char Then!)