Post/Author/DateTime	Post
SSj3goblin 01-17-07, 12:32 AM	A couple of months ago, me and the group I'm dm'ing decided to switch from FR to Eberron. They decided though, that they wanted to keep their characters (wich is understandable since the game is running since 2003 and they are now between level 10 and 13) so they shifted through a planar incident that involved an eldtrich machine the LoB had built to create mabar manifest zones inside "breather" cities, about 30 abishai's, a portal to Avernus and the cult of the dragon and the church of cyric as antagonists. To make a long story short, the characters (A 10th level elf fighter, a 12th level half elf wizard, a 7th level paladin/1st level fighter/4th level blackguard and a 12th level shifter druid who *is* native to Eberron, kinda acting as their guide), about 30 abishai's, a small village¹ and a statue of Tiamat got shifted from Faerun to Eberron (more precisly, in the mournland). After getting into Eberron, they crossed the mistwalls of the mournland to find themselves in Thrane (where they met the shifter), where they managed to become the nation's most wanted "criminals" for murdering everyone in a military fort and making a lightning rail go of the conductor stones, killing about everyone inside it (but THEY are innocents, this is the work of an Abishai and they know it). They managed to flee after the crash and fled to Breland. They are now in Vathirond, looking for a way to avoid Thranite autorities and find a place for themselves in this new (for them) world. I'm looking for some belivable way to get them out of trouble (as I expected them to surrender² to the authorities and would've been innocented by telling the real story in a zone of truth) and also, get them some kind of citizenship and a place in the world, with an organisation and patrons. Since they are so High level (for an Eberron campaign), they probably attracted the attention of many potential patrons for their presumed actions (I'd think the slaughter of Thrane soldiers in Arhytwan Keep and the sabotage of a Lightning train would warrant some good coverage in the Korranberg Chronicles). The first thing that comes to mind is the Aundairian crown, Aurela would probably more than happy to work with people who are thought to cause so much chaos in Thrane (and the wizards of arcanix and the congress would like to learn from people from another universe). Also, House Deneith would probably have an eye on such obviously powerful characters. I was also thinking that Karrnath would probably the more "welcoming" land for such a party and they could go to fort bones to have their "criminal" past erased and being given Karrn citizenship in exchange for military service at Fort Bones (from Five nations). Any other ideas for patrons/way to avoid all the troubles? They have an atlas of Korhvaire and already studied all the options and don't want to go to either Droaam, Q'bara or Darguun to hide. They are now heading for Sharn but it's probably the worst place to go when you're known as a terrorist. I was also wondering wether or not the knight marshals would be after them (or would house Tarashk)? Would it be too risky from Aundair to harbor them? Seeing how their relation is with Thrane, giving shelter to their most wanted criminals could even start a war, is it worth the risk for Aundair? Thanks for any help, I tried to keep this the sortest possible, if there are any questions, i'll gladly answer. ¹: The town has been destroyed after being twisted by the magic effects of the mournland when all the furniture inside the buildings animated and killed everyone in the town. ²: They didn't surrender for the fact that the Paladin turned into a blackguard.
Ellorin 01-17-07, 04:11 AM	A nice and, above all, Inspired person appeared and offered to make the charges disappear in exchange of their cooperation. It could be an innocent-looking member of the Trust as well( any intelligence agency would do, but I prefer them. They are very talented at blackmail, too).
Shady314 01-17-07, 04:30 AM	A couple of months ago, me and the group I'm dm'ing decided to switch from FR to Eberron. They decided though, that they wanted to keep their characters (wich is understandable since the game is running since 2003 and they are now between level 10 and 13) so they shifted through a planar incident that involved an eldtrich machine the LoB had built to create mabar manifest zones inside "breather" cities, about 30 abishai's, a portal to Avernus and the cult of the dragon and the church of cyric as antagonists. To make a long story short, the characters (A 10th level elf fighter, a 12th level half elf wizard, a 7th level paladin/1st level fighter/4th level blackguard and a 12th level shifter druid who *is* native to Eberron, kinda acting as their guide), about 30 abishai's, a small village¹ and a statue of Tiamat got shifted from Faerun to Eberron (more precisly, in the mournland). If the shifter knows Eberron why doesn't he offer some guidance on how to get out of the mess they're in? After getting into Eberron, they crossed the mistwalls of the mournland to find themselves in Thrane (where they met the shifter), where they managed to become the nation's most wanted "criminals" for murdering everyone in a military fort and making a lightning rail go of the conductor stones, killing about everyone inside it (but THEY are innocents, this is the work of an Abishai and they know it). They managed to flee after the crash and fled to Breland. They are now in Vathirond, looking for a way to avoid Thranite autorities and find a place for themselves in this new (for them) world. I'm looking for some belivable way to get them out of trouble (as I expected them to surrender² to the authorities and would've been innocented by telling the real story in a zone of truth) and also, get them some kind of citizenship and a place in the world, with an organisation and patrons. Since they won't surrender just have them be caught. They may be high level but you don't want them running unchecked throughout the world. If they're THE most wanted criminals in Thrane Jaela should be using divination to hound them. Since they are so High level (for an Eberron campaign), they probably attracted the attention of many potential patrons for their presumed actions (I'd think the slaughter of Thrane soldiers in Arhytwan Keep and the sabotage of a Lightning train would warrant some good coverage in the Korranberg Chronicles). Yes but the wrong kind of coverage. The Emerald Claw is the first thing that springs to my mind. Everyone that wants to use them will think they are evil murderous thugs. This means only evil organizations will be looking to recruit them. The first thing that comes to mind is the Aundairian crown, Aurela would probably more than happy to work with people who are thought to cause so much chaos in Thrane (and the wizards of arcanix and the congress would like to learn from people from another universe). That's the first thing? Aurala is one of the least likely patrons. She may have grand ambitions and Aundair as a whole is tense with Thrane but she is still Neutral Good. She won't like the PC's reputation anymore than the other monarchs. Also, House Deneith would probably have an eye on such obviously powerful characters. An EYE sure. The sentinel marshals would be hunting the PCs down. But to recruit them? The DM houses aren't in the business of recruiting criminals. I was also thinking that Karrnath would probably the more "welcoming" land for such a party and they could go to fort bones to have their "criminal" past erased and being given Karrn citizenship in exchange for military service at Fort Bones (from Five nations). Karnath can wipe your Karnathi criminal record. Thrane isn't going to care how long they serve at Fort Bones and Karnath will be under tremendous political pressure to extradite them. Which Kaius would since he is a big proponent of peace. Perhaps an extremely ambitious warlord might hide them. Any other ideas for patrons/way to avoid all the troubles? No patron can erase the mess they are in completely. Except Thrane. The best way is the way you thought. Have the law enforcement or even Jaela herself exonerate them. Then Jaela can task them with bringing the true criminals to justice to restore their name. They have an atlas of Korhvaire and already studied all the options and don't want to go to either Droaam, Q'bara or Darguun to hide. They are now heading for Sharn but it's probably the worst place to go when you're known as a terrorist. Except for Flamekeep Sharn is an atrocious place for them to hide. They need out of the Five Nations. Pretty much anywhere will do so long as it isn't Karnath, Breland Thrane or Aundair. I was also wondering wether or not the knight marshals would be after them (or would house Tarashk)? Sentinel marshals you mean? YES. Would it be too risky from Aundair to harbor them? Seeing how their relation is with Thrane, giving shelter to their most wanted criminals could even start a war, is it worth the risk for Aundair? Are 4 high level PCs worth reigniting the Last War?? Highly doubt it. The PCs are a political powder keg. They need to leave the 5N or clear their names. Either by themselves or with help. The only allies I can really think of are The Cabinet of Faces, or the Chamber. Both can act inexplicably. The Prophecy may mention 3 extraplanar travelers being important somehow unless a false accusation forces their flight blah blah blah so the Chamber may help them and the Cabinet of Faces will of course want some sort of payment. Now or in the future. Thanks for any help, I tried to keep this the sortest possible, if there are any questions, i'll gladly answer. ¹: The town has been destroyed after being twisted by the magic effects of the mournland when all the furniture inside the buildings animated and killed everyone in the town. ²: They didn't surrender for the fact that the Paladin turned into a blackguard. There's no reason not to turn themselves in just because the Paladin is a blackguard. They are wanted for specific crimes not being evil.
Errant 01-17-07, 08:45 AM	No patron can erase the mess they are in completely. Except Thrane. The best way is the way you thought. Have the law enforcement or even Jaela herself exonerate them. Then Jaela can task them with bringing the true criminals to justice to restore their name. How hard would it really be for Jaela to use clerical magic to divination spells that would reveal the true culprits behind the mess the PCs are in? If the PCs are innocent she could certainly figure that out quick enough. Gathering evidence to clear them in the eyes of other authorities would take a little more effort. That leaves room for Jaela uses magic to deliver a message to the PCs offering them a chance to redeem themselves/prove their innocence while Sentinel Marshals and House Tharashk bounty hunters try to bring them in on initial charges.
DargonSwift 01-17-07, 09:02 AM	How hard would it really be for Jaela to use clerical magic to divination spells that would reveal the true culprits behind the mess the PCs are in? If the PCs are innocent she could certainly figure that out quick enough. Gathering evidence to clear them in the eyes of other authorities would take a little more effort. That leaves room for Jaela uses magic to deliver a message to the PCs offering them a chance to redeem themselves/prove their innocence while Sentinel Marshals and House Tharashk bounty hunters try to bring them in on initial charges. Jaela is an 18th level cleric while in Flamekeep, plus has access to the Voice in the Flame. If it benefits your story, the Voice itself could tell her they are innocent. Also, House Medani could be called in to determine their innocence through contact other plane spells. Jaela IS the authority in Thrane. Even if they did do it, she could exonerate them. Jaela would not likely contact the PCs at all, but rather have a cardinal do it through House Sivis heirs and their sending ability. With a blackguard in the party, I doubt they'd get within a mile of Jaela herself.
SSj3goblin 01-17-07, 11:06 AM	The "Jaela can redeem them" was what I was going for before my players decided to flee (most of their possessions were left in custody to the Thranite autorities, as they had aldready been "caught" although only as witnesses, not wanted as criminals, and that's the train brining them to Flamekeep for testiomny and trial that was sabotaged) as I expected them to try to get back most of their stuff. If the shifter knows Eberron why doesn't he offer some guidance on how to get out of the mess they're in? Although the shifter is a native of Eberron, he spent the majority of his living in nature alone as a self styled "guardian of the forest" (Kinda cliché, but fits the fact the player is new to Eberron) so while he can offer some guidance as far as geographical travel goes, he is not a lawyer or a very knowledgeable person about the laws and power groups. There's no reason not to turn themselves in just because the Paladin is a blackguard. They are wanted for specific crimes not being evil. Yes, but a NE blackguard is less likely to turn himself in for crimes HE KNOWS he is not guitly of and run the risk of being undersevingly punished, something a LG paladin would probably do though. Overall thanks for the Advice, I guess i'll go as I have planned and have them be innocented by Jaela ("the silver flame does not want the execution of these persons, for they are innocent") while Cardinal Krozen would like nothing more than to have them killed, for he sees them as a threat to his power. So in the end they will end up free of charges but banned from Thrane (as Jaela isn't THAT much politicaly powerful). Would that be believable? And then, what? What should happen afterwards? If they are innocented they will probably fade away from public view quickly (until they really do something that meakes them notorious). I will try to have the PC's redeem themselves or lay low for awhile, or maybe change their apparences to avoid persecution (hair cut, haircolor, clothing, etc...).
DargonSwift 01-17-07, 11:13 AM	So in the end they will end up free of charges but banned from Thrane (as Jaela isn't THAT much politicaly powerful). Actually, Jaela *is* that powerful. She's the Pope, except she rules an entire nation. The cardinals may not like it, but they have to follow her orders. However, I believe some sources state that some of the past Speakers have been forcibly removed from their position through assassination or subterfuge. Even so, her word is LAW in Thrane.
DargonSwift 01-17-07, 11:23 AM	Party members future aside, I'm very interested in the idea behind this plot. What are the priests of Cyric to do? They'd most likely continue to recieve spells, via the Traveler, the Shadow, or the Mockery if nothing else. So, they'd see their spell use as proof Cyric existed in this new world, and would want to take full advantage of this world's religious structure to bring him here in full force. As far as these clerics are concerned, it's obvious the gods of this world don't care too much about their followers, since they don't interact with them. (From their point of view) Imagine what Cyric could do with a world like this...he could manifest his avatars, show these barbarians a "real" god. Surly these people would rather worship someone they "know" is real. I can just hear Cyric's laughter now. Sure, there may be some obstacles, but this could be an interesting basis for a campagin. The clerics move into a big city and begin subverting Cults of the Dragon Below, perhaps claiming Cyric is the true form of the Dragon Below (or Khyber himself; Khyber/Cyric). They might change thier holy symbol to a flaming dragon's skull vs. a flaming human skull. Perhaps they find new ways to use Khyber dragonshards that help Cyric gain a foothold in Eberron. The possibilities are interesting.
SSj3goblin 01-17-07, 11:41 AM	Actually, all the cyric priest are now dead. BUT, there are a lot of Abishai's left. Some of them want to recreate a link to Toril to allow the passage of Tiamat (imagine what would happen if Tiamat were to gain access to a Godless world such as Eberron) to Eberron so she can use it as a powerbase to take over Faerun and have her own personal domain( a whole universe, in that case). But the other half of the Abishai's actually work WITH the PC's (one even "possessed the blackguard as an ehancer" to fight against the Loyal abishai's) against the first group, although they are Abishai's and purely LE devils, they have no interest in seeing their big bad boss come back and send them back to hell to work for her as slaves. They have tasted freedom and now have plans of their own, the first of wich is to sever the link between the two universes, wich is still there in the form of a magically charged dragonshard (the one that caused the planar incident in the first place) attuned to Faerun. The PC wizard has it in its possession but doesn't want to destroy, she wants to find a way to gain power from it. I hope that story made sense, especially for someone who is outside of it, if I was to write it all it would take me dozens of pages.
SSj3goblin 01-17-07, 11:44 AM	The clerics move into a big city and begin subverting Cults of the Dragon Below, perhaps claiming Cyric is the true form of the Dragon Below (or Khyber himself; Khyber/Cyric). They might change thier holy symbol to a flaming dragon's skull vs. a flaming human skull. Perhaps they find new ways to use Khyber dragonshards that help Cyric gain a foothold in Eberron. The possibilities are interesting. The same thing is happening, in a way, with Tiamat. The abishai's loyal to her started a small cult to her devotion, claiming she will come and take over Eberron. This may eventually draw the attention of dragons of Argonessen, as Tiamat IS one of their gods (although probably dramatically different in their folklore) and will probably interfere, that's another matter I will need assistance on, how will the dragon react to a cult that claims that Tiamat will take over Eberron? Especially when it is led by Abishai's?
Endless_Helix 01-17-07, 07:59 PM	One thing that hasn't been brought up is that the PC's Accents may give them away as foreigners... They all speak common, but they're from another world, with different idioms, possibly even different sentence structure. Since travel is so common, most guards are going to recognize the different accents of the 5N, and the surrounding countries. Normally this wouldn't be much of a problem, but they are going to need papers to get into Sharn. Your average guard is going to realize that any papers they hand in are probably fake. This is pretty much the same everywhere except in Droaam, Darguun, Q'barra, Valenar, and to some extent Stormreach. Dragons are probably going to react with some suspicion and mirth when they hear about a Tiamat cult. If they send any agents to investigate, they'll probably not see anything untoword until they put on a serious spy operation, with divination, full infiltration, and a lot of funding. I honestly do not know a whole lot about Abishais, but I imagine that they are probably setting specific. Given that opinion, the dragons won't know what they are, and will try to find out what they are covertly. If they're not setting specific, then they're probably on Shavrath, and the Dragons would know about what they are. They'd probably try to figure out the Abishais motives. The only issue is that the dragons may actually want one of their gods to come to Eberron, unless Tiamat is veiwed as evil. As for the Abishais who want to work with the PC's, I'd imagine that the PC's wouldn't want to destroy the shard anyway. It's their only link to "home". Personally, I'd emphasize the "alieness" of Eberron, compared to the Forgotten Realms. Just little things like the names of the money, the names of the inns that are vaguely reminiscent of the ones back home, play up the dragonmarked houses, gray morality, and all the jazz that makes Eberron way awesome. This just what I'd do... I like to make my players suffer a bit. :)
SSj3goblin 01-17-07, 11:39 PM	Dragons are probably going to react with some suspicion and mirth when they hear about a Tiamat cult. If they send any agents to investigate, they'll probably not see anything untoword until they put on a serious spy operation, with divination, full infiltration, and a lot of funding. I honestly do not know a whole lot about Abishais, but I imagine that they are probably setting specific. Given that opinion, the dragons won't know what they are, and will try to find out what they are covertly. If they're not setting specific, then they're probably on Shavrath, and the Dragons would know about what they are. They'd probably try to figure out the Abishais motives. The only issue is that the dragons may actually want one of their gods to come to Eberron, unless Tiamat is veiwed as evil. I'm pretty sure Abishai ARE setting specific (well, they are in FCII now but i'm using the ones from Monsters of Faerun so they are setting in specific or, at least, they are in my campaign so devils with draconic traits/apperances may make the dragons unconfortable). As for the dragonshard that is "attuned" to Faerun, the fact that the link is still there (although it is a latent link, it's still not possible to open a portal between the two worlds, at least for now...), i'm planning on having Tiamat try to force her influence on Eberron, since she cannot manifest there for the lack of a direct link, she can nonetheless manifest some powers on Eberron. So she will mutate the chromatic dragons so that they spawn dragonspawns from the MMIV (finally got to use them!) to create herself an army on Eberron so you can bet the dragons will want that link shut down for good. Also, the PC's know (being told by a "friendly" abishai) that Tiamat is probably pretty mad at them for ruining her plans of conquest of Eberron, so going back to Toril (a world where the gods are very real) is a bad idea when a goddess would like nothing more than to bring you to hell. As far as the integration of my Players into the world go, I'm thinking, being foreigners, they could also find a way to change identities (as they don't really have one for now) and disappear into the world but they'd be fugitives for the rest of their lives, wich I doubt is something they really want. They have identification papers (real ones) but without any affiliation or residence noted on it, wich would single them out quickly. Also, I'm pretty sure nonevil patrons may be interested in them too, since they are probably more seen as terrorists than crazy psychopats and people will expect that there is a reason behind all the acts they are accused of. So the Aundairian crown MAY be interested to know them and their hypothetical patrons (the ennemies of my ennemy is my friend, no?).
DargonSwift 01-18-07, 11:16 AM	As for the dragonshard that is "attuned" to Faerun, the fact that the link is still there...I'm planning on having Tiamat try to force her influence on Eberron, since she cannot manifest there for the lack of a direct link, she can nonetheless manifest some powers on Eberron. So she will mutate the chromatic dragons so that they spawn dragonspawns ... to create herself an army on Eberron so you can bet the dragons will want that link shut down for good. Suggestions: The abishais travel to the Boneyard in the Blade Desert and begin constructing a five-headed dragon skeleton. The bones are studded with Khyber dragonshards and a ritual prepared that will allow Tiamat to slowly bind some of her essence into it...slowly turning it from a 5-headed dragon skeleton into a 5-headed dracolich. Perhaps this dracolich then feeds on dragons, drawing on them to become more whole (ie, fleshy), until it can become a full fledged avatar of Tiamat (opening the way for her to exert her full divine influence on the world). Some dragons might come to serve her, while others may oppose her. All in all, the dragons may be divided. Perhaps some ambiguous snippet of Prophesy talks about this event, but is unclear about whether its good or bad, so most dragons just wait and see. Maybe the shard is the key Tiamat needs to invest her new undead toy with her essence. The abishais bring the rituals to create dragonspawn, and use their draconic allies to rapidly breed servants. Perhaps they try to recruit the nation of Darguun or Droaam into their little plan. Perhaps the Daughters of Sora Kell can be convinced to serve Tiamat. Any way, just thinking out loud.
DragoonDarkfire 01-18-07, 11:41 AM	To make things interesting you might also want to consider bringing Bahamut into the mix (since he's kinda all against Tiamat and everything). He manages to send a messenger of his own to Eberron and contact the dragon's of Argonessen about Tiamat. I think it'd be interesting to see what the Dragons would do about this and how Bahamut would respond when he see's both evil metallic dragons and good chromatic dragons.
SSj3goblin 01-22-07, 01:31 PM	I finally found a way to get past my players being on the five nations top 10 most wanted criminals wich has the double benefint of being a great adventure hook. The blackguard of the party is allied with a Red Abishai, because they have common ennemies (and although the Abishai would never admit it, they are on par as far as power goes). That Abishai acts as a patron to the PC's and sees them as his most powerful/usefuls pawns. Them being wanted across the five nations reduces their usefulness a lot, so in order to gain the full advantages of using them he has to make the law forget them. How? Easy, he has many lesser abishai's underlings all with the classic abishai spell like abilities (alter self, command, suggestion) and will use them to surrender to the authorities under the PC's guises and fake their death by immolation (only holy and blessed weapons deal them lethal damage) thus the PC's will be free of their charges as they will already have been put tu trial and execution... At least, to everyone's eyes.
Splendide 01-22-07, 06:58 PM	I would take this as an opportunity to throw the players for a loop. Have House Deneith make them disappear, and assign them to do some gruntwork in the Shadow Marches or similar. "Guard these miners from attacks. Don't do anything that might identify you. This is the mediocre pay you will receive. If you do well, you may get better jobs."
Endless_Helix 01-22-07, 11:55 PM	House Denieth or House Tharashk are both good choices for these abishai to infilitrate, primarily because in many areas they are the law. It also gives the PC's a plausible cover story beyond the whole "beings from another plane thing", and provides a lot of options for the Abishai in question. Both houses have mercenary compliments as well as excellent tracking. House Tharaashk is probably better from the Abishai's veiw, since it, at least in my Eberron, much more disorganized than the Karrnathi-based Denieth. There aren't many other organizations of use, although another good group is the Cabinet of Faces. Since the group is dedicated to shapeshifters, it would be fairly easy to deal with the low-level changelings that make up most of the agents...