Intrigue And Espionage Inspiration For Eberron [Archive] - Wizards Community

Intrigue And Espionage Inspiration For Eberron [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Errant
12-02-05, 11:17 AM It occured to me that Eberron is beautifully set up for campaigns and adventures featuring a high level of intrigue far beyong the typical dungeon crawl/hack and slash adventures that seem to dominate most published adventures. BUT, those of us who appreciate those sort of adventures but lack experience &/or talent writing them could use some help to make it work. I hope people will contribute to this thread and useful collection of tips, plots and inspirations for this style of gaming.

Rule 1 Lets start by saying that the sort of adventures we're talking about generally require a high level of discretion on the part of all those involved. Intrigue and espionage require a low public profile on the parts of those involved and tactical finesse. Patrons will often deny any involvement with their agents activities and the law of the land will just as often protect the "villain".

Rule 2 We're talking about Eberron, so as much as possible keep the ideas consistent with the official published material. "What if the Church of the Silver Flame ruled all of Khorvaire with an iron fist" might be an interesting premise for a campaign but its not very useful for the majority of us.

This is the genre of stealthy fights behind closed doors, where public fighting is only done if you've got a quick exit and you won't be recognised.

This is where "Trust No-one" keeps you alive.
Errant
12-02-05, 12:08 PM My first offering..

Some inspiration
I found the Wikipedia entries for Espionage (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espionage) and Special Operations (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_operations) a great intro to real world examples. The wiki entry for Francis Walsingham (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Walsingham) made me wonder how to adapt the Ridolfi, Throckmorton and Babington plots.

Plothook
The PCs are travelling on the Lightning Rail heading to Sharn when a mortally wounded man collapses against a PC before slumping to the ground. Clutching at the PC, he pushes a letter into his hand, gasping "for Taras, at the Golden Horn, for the crown!". A concealed changeling by the door to their carriage fires a poisoned crossbow bolt at the dying man, finishing him off before he is able to speak further, before ducking out of sight. When the PCs get off the Lightning Rail, a well dressed woman approaches the PC who received the letter and says that 'friends' told her he was given something private that belongs to her, something she is willing to pay well to have returned. Declining further explanation she leaves if her offer is received, but if PCs try to deliver the letter they are set upon by assassins on an isolated bridge or elevator platform. If they finally do reach the Golden Horn inn with the letter, avoid drawing the attention of the law, quietly ascertain that Taras is a regular there, and discretely complete delivery, the PCs find they have proven themselves to a well connected individual who can use their skills for "another quiet task or two".
Cloud Divider
12-03-05, 02:00 PM There's a great many options you could work with, when trying to plan an espionage/intrigue game.

The first big question you (as GM) need to ask yourself is "What role will the PC's play in this... Are they simple pawns (that may eventually become players...works well for Conspiracy-themed games)? Are they already "in the system" (ie do they already have an allegiance, rank, or investiture such as the proverbial "license to kill")? Are the PC's going to have a major role/will they be movers-and-shakers?

In your decision, you may end up limiting the allowable character concepts to some degree, but it may make the campaign work better as a whole. So it's not necessarily a bad thing.

The next step, is to decide who the major (existing) players are in your World of Intrigue (which could be as small as the various power factions in Sharn or even a single Silver Flame Church or military organization or local Dragonmarked House Enclave, or the Big Players, like specific Lords of Dust and so on). Politics run the full range...

So those two steps have basically given you a scope of your planned campaign. The next step would be to flesh it out: think about the different factions and individuals, and decide what their goals are, and what lengths they will go to achieve them. Who are their rivals? Why (and how) do their rivals threaten them?

So, to pick a fairly nonstandard Intrigue campaign, I'm going to have the World of Intrigue focused on the Deneith of Sharn. In this hypothetical campaign, the PC's will need to be tied to the Deneith in some way, and end up in Sharn somehow. The campaign is going to primarily be set in Sharn.

Now, one might think "Hey! An All-Deneith game is pretty restrictive! Everyone's got to be Human, and have the Deneith Mark!" Not so! Deneith contains non-marked members, as well as "adjunct" (ie closely tied, but not officially) members via the Blademark and other contacts/contracts they may have. Maybe there's a Phiarlan operative PC that they work with, or an excoriate Cannith Artificer that they deal with. And so on. There's probably some things that would fit less well than others, but with a little thought and flexibility, you could make most things work.

Who are the Major Players? You've got the Khorvaire-level Deneith Chiefs. The Sharn Deneith (the PCs, non-Sharn Deneith based in Sharn, etc). The Corrupt Sharn Deneith. The King's Citadel. The Sixty. The Vampire Power-Broker (I forget the name - she's the one that corrupted Lucan in WotVB). The Boromar. The Overlook Kalashtar. The Inspired. I could list more, but it'd take forever...

Now let's look at Goals (I'm only going to do a couple):
The Deneith Patriarchs - Let's suppose they're a little bit suspicious about the Corrupt Sharn Deneith. Maybe they've got a clue here and there, but nothing substantial. They Need More Info. They'll use subterfuge (spy on themselves), maybe even more nefarious means.

The Corrupt Deneith - They've got that whole "Ascended" thing going on, where they think they're Beyond Human, Beyond Deneith. Most of them just think they're getting those nifty Psionic Powers as proof of their Better-ness. Probably few of them really know about the Inspired and the Quori. They want to expand their powerbase in Sharn. Conceal themselves and their activities from Outsider Deneith, but in a way that does not draw attention. They will use any means necessary (perhaps an Outsider Deneith managed to sneak into the facility in Copper Arch and Saw Too Much...his mysterious disappearance is what prompted the Deneith Patriarchs).

The Inspired - They've got their finger in many pies. They've got their nefarious ultimate goals, and the Sharn Deneith (and the Boromar...and the Sixty...and the Citadel...and...) all play a role. They want to exterminate the Kalashtar. But they need to do that and still make Riedra look like the "Good Guys". So they need to keep things subtle.

The Overlook Kalashtar - They've got their rivalry with Riedra and the Inspired. Maybe they know about the corruption within the Sharn Deneith. Or maybe not. They could easily have a Kalashtar disguise himself as a human and try to infiltrate the Deneith (PC flag!) to gather intelligence.

The Sixty - They're wealthy beyond words, and some are quite corrupt. They could easily try and use money to sway the Deneith on important matters. You could then tie the Sixty in with larger, Breland-wide politics (like the Swords of Liberty, and those trying to dethrone Boranel).

Now we sort of see where they all are, and how they tie together. From there, a campaign could range from fairly low-key detective work and investigation, to something far more...actiony (Look! It's Riedran Ninjas crashing through the window!). Now that you know what the goals of the factions are, you can start filtering in where the PC's get involved (furthering the goals of Faction X, foiling the goals of Faction Y, etc).

Does that help?

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Errant 12-02-05, 11:17 AM	It occured to me that Eberron is beautifully set up for campaigns and adventures featuring a high level of intrigue far beyong the typical dungeon crawl/hack and slash adventures that seem to dominate most published adventures. BUT, those of us who appreciate those sort of adventures but lack experience &/or talent writing them could use some help to make it work. I hope people will contribute to this thread and useful collection of tips, plots and inspirations for this style of gaming. Rule 1 Lets start by saying that the sort of adventures we're talking about generally require a high level of discretion on the part of all those involved. Intrigue and espionage require a low public profile on the parts of those involved and tactical finesse. Patrons will often deny any involvement with their agents activities and the law of the land will just as often protect the "villain". Rule 2 We're talking about Eberron, so as much as possible keep the ideas consistent with the official published material. "What if the Church of the Silver Flame ruled all of Khorvaire with an iron fist" might be an interesting premise for a campaign but its not very useful for the majority of us. This is the genre of stealthy fights behind closed doors, where public fighting is only done if you've got a quick exit and you won't be recognised. This is where "Trust No-one" keeps you alive.
Errant 12-02-05, 12:08 PM	My first offering.. Some inspiration I found the Wikipedia entries for Espionage (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espionage) and Special Operations (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_operations) a great intro to real world examples. The wiki entry for Francis Walsingham (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Walsingham) made me wonder how to adapt the Ridolfi, Throckmorton and Babington plots. Plothook The PCs are travelling on the Lightning Rail heading to Sharn when a mortally wounded man collapses against a PC before slumping to the ground. Clutching at the PC, he pushes a letter into his hand, gasping "for Taras, at the Golden Horn, for the crown!". A concealed changeling by the door to their carriage fires a poisoned crossbow bolt at the dying man, finishing him off before he is able to speak further, before ducking out of sight. When the PCs get off the Lightning Rail, a well dressed woman approaches the PC who received the letter and says that 'friends' told her he was given something private that belongs to her, something she is willing to pay well to have returned. Declining further explanation she leaves if her offer is received, but if PCs try to deliver the letter they are set upon by assassins on an isolated bridge or elevator platform. If they finally do reach the Golden Horn inn with the letter, avoid drawing the attention of the law, quietly ascertain that Taras is a regular there, and discretely complete delivery, the PCs find they have proven themselves to a well connected individual who can use their skills for "another quiet task or two".
Cloud Divider 12-03-05, 02:00 PM	There's a great many options you could work with, when trying to plan an espionage/intrigue game. The first big question you (as GM) need to ask yourself is "What role will the PC's play in this... Are they simple pawns (that may eventually become players...works well for Conspiracy-themed games)? Are they already "in the system" (ie do they already have an allegiance, rank, or investiture such as the proverbial "license to kill")? Are the PC's going to have a major role/will they be movers-and-shakers? In your decision, you may end up limiting the allowable character concepts to some degree, but it may make the campaign work better as a whole. So it's not necessarily a bad thing. The next step, is to decide who the major (existing) players are in your World of Intrigue (which could be as small as the various power factions in Sharn or even a single Silver Flame Church or military organization or local Dragonmarked House Enclave, or the Big Players, like specific Lords of Dust and so on). Politics run the full range... So those two steps have basically given you a scope of your planned campaign. The next step would be to flesh it out: think about the different factions and individuals, and decide what their goals are, and what lengths they will go to achieve them. Who are their rivals? Why (and how) do their rivals threaten them? So, to pick a fairly nonstandard Intrigue campaign, I'm going to have the World of Intrigue focused on the Deneith of Sharn. In this hypothetical campaign, the PC's will need to be tied to the Deneith in some way, and end up in Sharn somehow. The campaign is going to primarily be set in Sharn. Now, one might think "Hey! An All-Deneith game is pretty restrictive! Everyone's got to be Human, and have the Deneith Mark!" Not so! Deneith contains non-marked members, as well as "adjunct" (ie closely tied, but not officially) members via the Blademark and other contacts/contracts they may have. Maybe there's a Phiarlan operative PC that they work with, or an excoriate Cannith Artificer that they deal with. And so on. There's probably some things that would fit less well than others, but with a little thought and flexibility, you could make most things work. Who are the Major Players? You've got the Khorvaire-level Deneith Chiefs. The Sharn Deneith (the PCs, non-Sharn Deneith based in Sharn, etc). The Corrupt Sharn Deneith. The King's Citadel. The Sixty. The Vampire Power-Broker (I forget the name - she's the one that corrupted Lucan in WotVB). The Boromar. The Overlook Kalashtar. The Inspired. I could list more, but it'd take forever... Now let's look at Goals (I'm only going to do a couple): The Deneith Patriarchs - Let's suppose they're a little bit suspicious about the Corrupt Sharn Deneith. Maybe they've got a clue here and there, but nothing substantial. They Need More Info. They'll use subterfuge (spy on themselves), maybe even more nefarious means. The Corrupt Deneith - They've got that whole "Ascended" thing going on, where they think they're Beyond Human, Beyond Deneith. Most of them just think they're getting those nifty Psionic Powers as proof of their Better-ness. Probably few of them really know about the Inspired and the Quori. They want to expand their powerbase in Sharn. Conceal themselves and their activities from Outsider Deneith, but in a way that does not draw attention. They will use any means necessary (perhaps an Outsider Deneith managed to sneak into the facility in Copper Arch and Saw Too Much...his mysterious disappearance is what prompted the Deneith Patriarchs). The Inspired - They've got their finger in many pies. They've got their nefarious ultimate goals, and the Sharn Deneith (and the Boromar...and the Sixty...and the Citadel...and...) all play a role. They want to exterminate the Kalashtar. But they need to do that and still make Riedra look like the "Good Guys". So they need to keep things subtle. The Overlook Kalashtar - They've got their rivalry with Riedra and the Inspired. Maybe they know about the corruption within the Sharn Deneith. Or maybe not. They could easily have a Kalashtar disguise himself as a human and try to infiltrate the Deneith (PC flag!) to gather intelligence. The Sixty - They're wealthy beyond words, and some are quite corrupt. They could easily try and use money to sway the Deneith on important matters. You could then tie the Sixty in with larger, Breland-wide politics (like the Swords of Liberty, and those trying to dethrone Boranel). Now we sort of see where they all are, and how they tie together. From there, a campaign could range from fairly low-key detective work and investigation, to something far more...actiony (Look! It's Riedran Ninjas crashing through the window!). Now that you know what the goals of the factions are, you can start filtering in where the PC's get involved (furthering the goals of Faction X, foiling the goals of Faction Y, etc). Does that help?