Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Raven Dark 08-01-05, 09:03 PM	I am starting a new "one-shot adventure" for my friends and I wanted to ask for some help piecing together a plot that they will remember. :D I want an adventure in which the heroes try and recover a kidnapped victim of great political importance. If they don't successfully recover the victim, it could mean the return of the Last War. What I wanted help with is: Who would make a really good victim? which person/group would make for a good kidnapper? Why did the kidnapping take place (and I want something deeper than "to start the war")? Who else should be involved as a counterpoint/competition to the heroes and why? How can I make this one adventure a memorable one? :confused: I'm looking for ideas. Show me what you got! :) I wanted to do something new so I premaid all of the characters and had the players draw the character names from a hat. So far most everyone ended up with a character that they would otherwise never have played, so I'm hoping it will be a fun learning experiance for everyone. :D The PCs are as follows: Gordofan (N Male Ogre Barbarian1/Fighter2 from Droaam) - A former slave and gladitorial champion from Droaam, Gordofan escaped his masters by becoming a citizen of Breland, thereby making his master's hold on him illegal. He works for House Denieth as a mercenary and specializes in grappling. His masters from Droaam endlessly plot on getting him back. Connection: I intend for him to be the hired bodyguard of the kidnap victim at the start of the adventure who failed to protect his charge. Thus, he will be duty-bound to locate and return the victim. Jorjane d'Orion (NG Male Human Fighter4/Dragonmarked Heir5 from Karnath) - A Karnathian disgraced war veteran who adventures much like a Paladin would. Connection: I'm still trying to tie him into the plot somehow. Help requested. Syoukan d'Tharashk (LG Male Human Cleric4/Dragonmarked Heir5 from Breland) - Head of Syoukan Seeker Services, an organization in Sharn which specializes in finding and recovering missing persons. Connection: He will be hired to locate and return the kidnap victim at the start of the adventure as he is the best known specialist of hsi field. Zilargo Hahns (CG Male Human Bard9 from Thrane) - A friar of the Silver Flame who functions more as a cleric than the party's actual cleric (much less as a bard). Also a humanist and pacifist. Connection: He will be hired on as a member of Syoukan Seeker Services at the start of the adventure. Party Notes: Two of the party members also have the Leadership and the Favored in the House feats. Thus, the party has a lot of connections and resources in addition to their already formidable powers from the start. What's more, most of them being 9th level goody-goodies in Eberron means they are well respected.
KP91 08-01-05, 09:37 PM	Any family of the Ir' prefix on their surname. My ideas: Have a noble family member taken from Karrnath and with Evidence they were taken by Thrane: maybe a witness saw a sheild with the Silver Flame emblem. Karrnath gets declares war and they have many allies. Thrane hires the PC's to prove who really did it. The real kidnappers were the Emerald Claw, knowing that the other countries would help Karrnath, so that Karrnath rules the throne of Galifar.
Charles Phipps 08-01-05, 09:49 PM	Old fashioned kidnap the Princess. Have it be members of the Dreaming Dark who commit suicide rather than be captured. They are agents of Reidra that are trying to weaken the Five Nations more.
KP91 08-01-05, 09:56 PM	That might reveal to much. The Inspired are all across the 5 Nations and so far have appeared peacfull. If they found the suicide-killed bodies, then Khorvaire could prepare for the attack. The Dreaming Dark prefers to work in secret.
Cloud Divider 08-01-05, 10:54 PM	Well, look at things that have started previous wars. The so-called "spark" that started World War I was the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, heir to the throne of Austria, while visiting a recently-conquered territory (Bosnia-Herzegovina). He was a relatively small fish - certainly not in line for leadership or significant influence on the other major powers of the time... The point of that little story, is that you don't necessarily need a direct correlation to Important Things to have Significant Results. Enter the fine art of the Diplomatic Incident... For instance, let's say that your victim was the child of a wealthy (but NOT noble, or Marked) Brelish family. She was kidnapped by simple bandits while the victim was on holiday near the Aundair border. The bandits nabbed her in hopes of a really fat ransom chest. Her family, pulls in all kinds of favors with the Brelish government, and is able to get a detachment of troops (basic warriors, but wearing Brelish uniforms) led by a clearly marked Citadel Elite to pursue the kidnappers. The troops get briefly ambushed (but it doesn't slow them down - just gets them angry for getting fooled so easily), and the tide of battle quickly shifts, and the brigands flee (still with the victim). The Brelish troops pursue (perhaps even recovering the victim in the process), until the brigands cross the Aundair border. Because of bruised ego and vindictive streak, the Elite commands his troop to continue onwards, with orders to kill the rag-tag remnants of the brigands. Let's now say that the brigands end up fleeing past some farmlands near an Aundairian village. A simple sheep-herder hears some noise, goes to investigate, and sees a LARGE (ok, 10-20) uniformed Brelish unit, commanded by a Citadel Elite, chasing after what appear to be scared peasant/beggars (our scared-witless brigands), and cutting them down "in cold blood" (and runs back to his village as quick as he can). The Brelish troop finish off the brigands, and realize it's high time to head back over the border, before anyone notices. Maybe in the scuffle, a severely wounded Brelish soldier gets left behind (or anything else providing solid evidence of Brelish military involvement). So we've now got a border skirmish, that went south. Breland forces penetrated "deep" (hey, it's relative, and don't forget not to discount the powers of sensational journalism) into Aundairian territory, and killed (presumably) Aundairian citizens with little mercy. Let's now posit that the village vicinity in which this occurred happens to be under the control of an Aundairian nobleman, who's got some SERIOUS axes to grind against Breland during the Last War (maybe he lost some nice land when the borders were redrawn). He's also got some not insignificant pull in Court. He's now got an excuse, and can basically keep screaming and yelling until Aurala does something about it (perhaps he's got enough common support). Matters escalate. Accusations fly ("The Brigands were actually mercenaries in the employ of Aundair, attempting to destabilize the Brelish economy by targeting the <kidnappers> merchant family"). Totally unrelated border violence get attributed to "organized" attacks. Maybe a Brelish town happens to have been a former Aundairian town, and wants to rebel. One side decides to send "Peacekeeping Forces" to the border to calm things down. The other retaliates. Somebody screws up and/or ends up on the pointy end of an itchy trigger finger. Both sides' Peacekeepers end up in a larger skirmish. Boranel sends reinforcements. Aurala sends the Knights Phantom. A Dark Lantern assassinates that nobleman... KABOOM! All because of a botched rescue operation. (What if the victim WANTED to be kidnapped?) Does that get your imagination's gears turning?
Raven Dark 08-02-05, 01:58 AM	I've decided that I want part of the adventure to take place in the Mournlands. Why? Because it's cool and I have a lot of creepy ideas which will be memorable in their own right. :D Try not to get too convoluted though. Remember, this isn't a whole campaign that can contain tons of intrigue, it's a single adventure. In any case, you all have some good ideas. Keep em' comin'! :cool:
getyourspotusa 08-02-05, 08:47 AM	Cloud - NICE. That is a Sweet explanation of how complicated a simple misunderstanding can get. And you didn't even involve treaties or diplomacy much. Well, it's in there a little... Everybody remember Nikita Kruschev telling the Americans that he would 'Bury' us, or the Cuban Missile Crisis? VERY close calls there... I liked Cloud's idea - make the kidnap victim a 'willing' victim. Now, many (general) reasons here... Get Father's/Mother's attention. Get together with boyfriend, who is a member of a rival house/political faction. (Romeo + Juliet) Hurt Father/Mother. Get money from Father/Mother. Hurt Breland. Get the money to someone who needs it. Grandpa/Geandma has lots of money, but she hates him/her. (pick a reason) ... Why do people commit crimes? [Not an expert. I'm thinking it might be interesting to pick up a text on crime for police officers to learn about the criminal psyche... esp to run a crime campaign in Sharn...] [Maybe a law enforcement officer can help here...] Love Money Political beliefs Religious beliefs Revenge/'Justice' Insanity Survival (this is last, on purpose) ----- [brainstorm] Here's an idea. Throughout the adventure, give a glimpse of each kidnapper. Make them interesting NPC's in their own right. Dont describe them, do a First-person perspective narrative from each person. ie, Mr Brown. [Apologies to Reservoir Dogs - gives them anonymity and some organization.] "He got up and rolled out of bed as he heard his name called from the other room. ~Gods, I'm getting old. Still, I've got a few good years left.~ So entering the other room, when he saw Mr. Pink, and Ms. Blue, and Muffy tied up in the corner, he just grunted to them, rather than go off on one of his tirades - he was just too tired to berate their bad discipline. But at least Ms. Blue could cook. As he went for the fresh bread and meat, she said to him, "Morning, Bo-" "HEY! Mr BROWN! NO NAMES, No-face!" She shut her mouth, the slur like a fist in her stomach..." Go from there... <>
getyourspotusa 08-02-05, 08:53 AM	BTW, The Mournlands is a horrible place. (Just read 'Marked for Death'). It's a HORRIBLE place. IMHO, I think the "1001 Mournland Horrors' thread http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=407341 Is right on the nose... if you wanna freak out your players, it's a good way to go. The border of Breland and the Mournlands might be even scarier - the looming presence of insane evil might be better, and give them a reason to want more... :) And you don't have to give them direct experience of these horrors, just stories from the border towns might be enough, and allow you to gauge their reactions to these horrors. <>
Taylor Haven 08-02-05, 11:24 AM	If ive gathered what you said correctly you want to do a one shot adventure into the mournlands that involves a Kidnapping. Well the Mournlands isnt exactly a nice and safe haven for people to go into with their victim. He'll if you were waiting for a big pay off from a victims family would you take her to Iraq to wait it out? However you are in luck, because the Lord of Blades is here to offer you a simple solution. Have the Kidnapped Victim be a Warforged, preferably one that was arguing for warforged rights in Breland. Political Activist's make excellent targets for people trying to destabalize governments. 1) Local Warforged Activist is Kidnapped 2) Anti-Warforged league is blamed by warforged community, retaliations from trained soldiers begin when initial clues turn up nothing. 3) Anti-Warforged use violence as an excuss to press for legislation, quoting the innate need for violence withen the Living Constructs as demonstrated. Things are getting worse. 4) Party is sent off to find activist, clues lead to Mournlands. 5) Party has wacky adventures in Mournlands 6) Party finds Activist in the company of other Warforged, his kidnappers. The Lord of Blades sought to bring more Warforged to his side and was willing to sacrifice one of his "brothers" if that was the necessary catalyst. Now its your option at this point of the Party Fights the Warforged, returns to Sharn to try and explain matters, if the Activist wants to come back with them (Perhaps he's been swayed to the LoB doctrine), or what have you. I hope that ties your twin interests together sufficiently.
Raven Dark 08-02-05, 03:44 PM	...However you are in luck, because the Lord of Blades is here to offer you a simple solution...I hope that ties your twin interests together sufficiently. Initially, I wasn't going to use the LoB as the primary antagonsist. Now that you mention it though, it does make the most sense if I want to use the Mournlands. It also works great with the Orion fighter in the group as he "...hates all warforged with just as much passion as he hated the war—seeing them as little more than killing machines not to be trusted." It would make things real fun to have to save something he hates.
Raven Dark 08-02-05, 04:03 PM	I figure that if I give you guys some more character detail, it might help you help me with a more interesting adventure. So without further ado, here are the characters' bios: GORDOFAN Appearance: Gordofan is both big and handsome (by ogre standards). He has a thick gray hide covered in numerous battle scars, long greasy black hair, striking gray eyes, and layer upon layer of well-honed muscles. Clothing: Gordofan wears a large pair of thick leather breaches, a belt, and sturdy leather boots—all designed to fit his massive body size. He also binds his lengthy hair at the top of his head to keep it out of his eyes during battle. Personality: Gordofan is exceptionally smart for an ogre, and he knows it. Indeed, his wisdom and intellect exceed that of most of the common races of Khorvaire. Unlike most ogres, Gordofan is neither short-tempered nor sullen and has developed a level of self-control that allows him to travel through most civilized lands without causing much trouble. Like most ogres, however, he would rather act than ponder and would rather fight than argue. He has a great love of the simple pleasures such as feasting, drinking, boasting, singing, wrestling (his favorite form of combat), drumming, and wild dancing. If given a chance (and not condemned for his racial heritage), Gordofan is really quite friendly and polite towards others and loves making new friends and social acquaintances. Region of Origin: Gordofan grew up in Droaam and has long since fought in the many gladiatorial arenas as a fighter-slave. Since his escape he has lived in and around Sharn in the land of Breland. History/Background: Gordofan grew up in the gladiatorial arenas within the monstrous land of Droaam as a slave…and as one of their many champions. With the strength of a true giant at his disposal, Gordofan is renowned across all of Droaam for his pugilistic ability to defeat nearly any opponent by breaking their backs with his shear strength or by strangling them to death with his bare hands. It wasn’t until just after his 21st year that he finally gained his freedom. While traveling through Sharn as an “attraction,” Gordofan stunned his captors with his cunning when he escaped, fled to a nearby guard’s barracks, claimed sanctuary, and successfully petitioned to become a citizen of Breland (thus freeing himself from his foreign master’s now illegal hold on him). He has since lived as a powerful House Deneith mercenary within Sharn, knowing full well that his former masters seethe with rage in Droaam and endlessly plot of ways to recapture their former champion. Quote: “My masters have requested that I break you now.” - Gordofan, before breaking a stone giant’s spine in sixteen different places. JORJANE D'ORION Appearance: Jorjane is a tall, handsome man with long brown hair, light blue eyes, a comforting smile amidst a beard and mustache, and a healthy build of muscles throughout his body. Clothing: Jorjane prefers thick rugged clothes of natural colors (mostly shades of deep green and rust brown) that would survive the harshest of environs. When not wearing his exotic armor, he is often seen wearing thick gloves, sturdy boots, and a dark brown leather explorer’s outfit. Personality: Jorjane is a serious man who has a severe distaste for war—no matter who benefits from it. Despite this mindset, he is still fascinated with martial traditions and believes that everyone should know how to wield a sword, if only to defend their family from the monsters of the world. When not striking against fell forces, Jorjane is a very sociable person with a love for the important things in life such as family, friends, and home. Jorjane, like his father, would gladly fight and die to protect such important things. Aside from this, Jorjane hates all warforged with just as much passion as he hated the war—seeing them as little more than killing machines not to be trusted. Region of Origin: Jorjane grew up in the military state of Karrnath, but often travels to other lands on his personal quest to fight evil. History/Background: Jorjane is a child of the Last War. Not only did his father fight and die to defend his family, but Jorjane himself grew up to fight in the very same war. Despite his many military successes, fighting against other humanoids always left a foul and bitter taste in his mouth. It was for this reason that he left—turning his heroic military career into disgraced rumors in mere weeks. He now travels across Khorvaire doing good deeds wherever he can much as a paladin might. He was last seen traveling towards the Mournland to investigate rumors of a warforged army building there. Quote: “I fight because I must, but always remember: A senseless war only leads to senseless death.” - Jorjane’s father, advising his young son before disappearing forever into the Last War. SYOUKAN D’THARASHK Appearance: Handsome is often heard in the same sentence as Syoukan’s name when spoken amongst the ladies. He has been blessed with smooth skin, chiseled features, high cheekbones, breathtaking green eyes, silky blonde hair, and a broad smile filled with pearly white teeth. Clothing: Syoukan’s clothing can’t be described as anything less than regal. He is most often seen wearing an embroidered purple and white clerical vestment with a fancy green cloth cap at his head. Personality: Syoukan is a wise and charming individual who has a great love of people, knowledge, and magic (in that order). When he sets himself onto an important task, his sheer determination can be almost palpable. Many say that is why he is so good at his job. When his work gives him time, Syoukan is a very sociable person who actively uses his keen senses and guile to increase his fame and fortune amongst the local residents of Sharn. Region of Origin: Syoukan grew up in Breland within the city of Sharn, traveling elsewhere only occasionally (generally in pursuit of kidnappers). History/Background: Syoukan is a prominent member of House Tharashk, a Cleric of some power, and an all around popular individual throughout the city of Sharn. His popularity stems primarily from his job as a finder of lost people—kidnap victims in particular. He runs a small subsidiary of the Finders Guild called “Syoukan Seeker Services” in which he, his cohort (LN female human, diviner 7), and his followers (a number of talented bounty hunters, diviners, and inquisitives) all work together to reduce the all too common kidnappings within the city of Sharn. Their specialty is finding lost persons quickly and efficiently before any harm can befall the victim. They also search for stolen or lost goods on occasion. Syoukan does charge for his services, but ensures that the price is affordable to the client in question and always donates all of his proceeds to good causes (namely his church, his house, and his own organization). Quote: “I have located the girl.” - Syoukan d’Tharashk, moments before recovering a kidnap victim. ZILARGO HAHNS Appearance: As jovial a man as Zilargo Hahns is, he was born with a very serious looking countenance. Despite this odd pairing of traits, his strong chin and deep green eyes serve only to enhance his smile and friendly appearance. The rest of his body is heavily tanned from his travels and shows many signs of a rugged traveler; this does nothing to interfere with his regal appearance, however. Clothing: Simple yet elegant best describes Friar Zilargo’s wardrobe. While traveling Zilargo often wears a broad-rimmed hat and form-fitting coat with long sleeves along with a pair of sturdy (often muddy) boots, a shirt, and a pair of breaches. Personality: Friar Zilargo is an outgoing young man who always seems to be doing something. He is a humanist and pacifist in the extreme, thus he does not believe in killing sentient humanoids (fiends and undead are another matter however). Indeed, his love for people is so great as to exceed even his own faith in the Silver Flame. Due to his high altruistic ideals, Zilargo works extraordinarily hard at helping others whenever possible. He is not above using his past deeds and reputation as a good man to draw people into his faith, however. Region of Origin: Zilargo grew up in the theocratic nation of Thrane. As a young man however, his wanderlust drove him from his home to Sharn, Breland. History/Background: In Zilargo’s youth his devotion and studies gained him some status as a Friar of the Church of the Silver Flame. Despite his love of the church and its scruples, he had a strong sense of wanderlust, and it was this will to travel that caused him to leave his home country and travel to Breland to help spread the faith as a missionary. He saw much during his travels from home, gaining more knowledge than he ever thought possible as well as a unique cohort by the name of Dorigan (CG male blink dog, barbarian 1). Once in Sharn, he quickly discovered Syoukan Seeker Services, a subsidiary of the Finder’s Guild which was created to find and recover kidnap victims and missing persons. Using the organization’s good deeds to increase his own reputation, Zilargo quickly gained many new followers to his faith. When not tending to his followers, Zilargo likes to travel abroad, helping Syoukan Seeker Services in long range missions. Quote: “There is hope yet…even for you.” - Zilargo, turning yet another from villainy to faith.
Cloud Divider 08-03-05, 12:16 AM	I've decided that I want part of the adventure to take place in the Mournlands. Why? Because it's cool and I have a lot of creepy ideas which will be memorable in their own right. :D The Mournlands are cool... But there's a problem with using it as a setting, if you're wanting this kidnapping to turn into a war... Nobody cares about the Mournlands. Nobody cares about it, except the Lord of Blades. There's no power there. The Cyrans want it, but they can't exactly do anything with it at this point. If the LoB masterminds the kidnapping, he just makes himself an enemy of one of the Five Nations. He's too much of a common enemy - his picking a fight could easily just result in giving the Nations a reason to cooperate. The LoB isn't enough of a power player to spark a war, unless you pull the Archduke Ferdinand thing. Alternately you can have the Aundairian kidnappers take the Brelish victim to a site in the Mournlands. But even then, there's really just not enough there to hit critical mass - it's way too easy to write off a skirmish when it's in (effectively) neutral territory. That's why the kidnappers should end up in non-neutral territory. Try not to get too convoluted though. Remember, this isn't a whole campaign that can contain tons of intrigue, it's a single adventure. Again, that's part of the reason I'd vote against the Mournlands - you start needing fairly contrived circumstances to really get the political gravity to make it work. I mean, if you wanted to start a war between Thrane and Karrnath, which do you think would inflame the population more: Chasing a Thranish "extremist group" with a magical superweapon of mass destruction through the Mournlands, or chasing that same extremist group through Karrnathi streets? If you're trying to cram everything into a single session, you don't have time for the big buildup (...that may explain why the Mournlands chase is such a big deal). So go for the most obvious Big Impact. Sorry I can't quite formulate any really big ideas tonight - I'm pretty wiped out from work today. I'll see if I can come up with something cleverer later... (Incidentally, I've got a few plans in my campaign for a few Diplomatic Incidents that could spark a war between Breland and Darguun - some of my players read these boards, so PM me for details).
Raven Dark 08-03-05, 01:42 AM	Maybe I should simplify it since it IS just one adventure. Do you think that instead of a kidnapping it would be better to have some rich noble (from Cye maybe) hire Syoukan Seeker Services to return his only daughter from the mournlands (who is believed to be dead by everyone but the noble himself). I can use the Mournlands and the LoB to make it a memorable adventure.
Steelpunk 08-03-05, 02:15 AM	Have the kidnapping target be the wife of a noted diplomat from Nation X (your choice). However, the wife is actually the villain. She's a militant who believes the crown belongs permanently in her nation, and has grown tired of watching from the sidelines and believes her husband doesn't have what it takes to get things moving politically. So, she hires a changeling to impersonate her, and a group of professionals disguised to belong to Nation Y (your choice) to stage the kidnapping while she goes into hiding. She has forged a small alliance with the Lord of Blades (if you want Mournland action) or the Daughters of Sora Kell, promising national recognition and autonomy once her nation comes to power. Instructions are for the professionals to get "caught" by the PCs, and the changeling impersonator to fake the murder of the wife at the hands of Nation Y, starting a diplomatic incident. The PCs might learn the truth but have no actual proof, and would then need to find the wife and bring it all to light before the incident escalates to conflict (likely running into resistance from the forces of the LoB/Droaam in the process). Alternatively, if you just want to go with a Mournland retrieval adventure, have the PCs be hired by a noblewoman who fell into a "forbidden love" with a warforged soldier from the national army who was lost in the Day of Mourning. Since the Mournland is less hostile for WF, she hopes he could still be alive, but when the PCs find him he has allied with LoB, who has promised him an escape from his confusing and painful emotions of lost love by helping him to embrace his stronger, emotionless construct aspect.
Mr. Wilson 08-03-05, 03:55 AM	Well, look at things that have started previous wars. The so-called "spark" that started World War I was the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, heir to the throne of Austria, while visiting a recently-conquered territory (Bosnia-Herzegovina). He was a relatively small fish - certainly not in line for leadership or significant influence on the other major powers of the time... As a World War I Historian (yep with a degree in History and everything) I'd like to point out the good Archduke was the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. As in first in line to one of the Major European Empires and hence really friggin' important. He was most certainly not "a small fish". That is all.
Missekat 08-03-05, 04:27 AM	How about using the wf kidnapping thing but NOT making the antagonist the LOB? Ude this guy instead: http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=473524 That way you have the chance to shake a bit at your players preconceptions. Make the kidnapping a botched rescue operation, or something the White King isnt aware of. The White King isnt widely known, and if someone kidnapped a person and took her/him away to another country no one would expect him. Dont know if it would work, but t would be anice way to shake it up a bit.
Cloud Divider 08-03-05, 12:37 PM	As a World War I Historian (yep with a degree in History and everything) I'd like to point out the good Archduke was the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. As in first in line to one of the Major European Empires and hence really friggin' important. He was most certainly not "a small fish". I stand corrected. Thanks. It's been some time since I'd studied WWI... Looks like it's time for me to go back and hit the books again.
Runeblood7 08-03-05, 12:57 PM	The one I wrote for my players (which they never went on, because their punks) is detailed slightly below. There have been problems with the lightning rail from Aundair to Karnath, this ties in fairly well. Aundair and Karnath are still tense after the war. In exchange for easier patrols on the seas, and replacement of lost land during the Last War, Aundair offers one of it's highest noble daughters' hand to King Kaius III. Kaius, interested in easing tensions has agreed. The bride is shipped with an escort on the most secure Lightning Rail towards Karnath. It never makes it. The Karnathi military investigates but only finds scraps of cloth. Witnesses abourd the train say that men on spectral horses carried them off. The uniforms they describe look like the uniforms of the Knights Phantom. In reality, a sect of the Emerald Claw (who wishes to continue tension and war with Aundai) has posed as the KP with Ghost Brute Warhorses (Savage Species, Ghost Touch saddles can be found in A&EG I think) After investigation and information gathering, the Emerald Claw can be tracked back to an abandoned decrepit fortress, where the characters can infiltrate the keep and rescue the noblewoman (to the debt of both countries) before the war flares up on both sides again. Hope this helps