Post/Author/DateTime	Post
naturax 12-01-07, 10:15 AM	I have this terrible affliction as a DM: I have great concepts and no idea how to execute them. I am going to outline a plot arc that I've just started for my PC and I'd like ideas about how to pull it off, exactly. Any thoughts at all would be vastly appreciated. Thanks! The PC has been sent to Droaam to recover a devastating weapon called Fernia's Chosen that was built by the mages of Arcanix during the Last War but never put into use. Through political scheming, when the project was canceled a few years before the war ended the weapon was sent to the Queen of Stone for safekeeping, and now that the PC's employers (The Tyrants of Sharn) have heard about it, they want it too. Of course agents from Arcanix are looking for it too, because they don't want the world to find out what they have been working on and they want it back. The PC has a NPC follower going with equipped with Eyes of Not Petrification (the best item I could come up with to make someone immune to petrification) and a handful of Stone to Flesh scrolls to fix the PC as needed, so at least that element is taken care of. The plan is to join one of the Orien caravans bound for Graywall, posing as mercenaries, and then gather more information from contacts in Graywall. And eventually visit the Queen of Stone in Czaak Draal? This is where things get fuzzy: how do I turn this concept into a set of encounters that turns into a game? Thanks again!
Yakman 12-01-07, 02:52 PM	I have this terrible affliction as a DM: I have great concepts and no idea how to execute them. I am going to outline a plot arc that I've just started for my PC and I'd like ideas about how to pull it off, exactly. Any thoughts at all would be vastly appreciated. Thanks! The PC has been sent to Droaam to recover a devastating weapon called Fernia's Chosen that was built by the mages of Arcanix during the Last War but never put into use. Through political scheming, when the project was canceled a few years before the war ended the weapon was sent to the Queen of Stone for safekeeping, and now that the PC's employers (The Tyrants of Sharn) have heard about it, they want it too. Of course agents from Arcanix are looking for it too, because they don't want the world to find out what they have been working on and they want it back. The PC has a NPC follower going with equipped with Eyes of Not Petrification (the best item I could come up with to make someone immune to petrification) and a handful of Stone to Flesh scrolls to fix the PC as needed, so at least that element is taken care of. The plan is to join one of the Orien caravans bound for Graywall, posing as mercenaries, and then gather more information from contacts in Graywall. And eventually visit the Queen of Stone in Czaak Draal? This is where things get fuzzy: how do I turn this concept into a set of encounters that turns into a game? Thanks again! Depending on how much fighting you want, Droaam just screams for hard on, balls to the walls combat. This is monster land--anarchic, dangerous, and above all, violent. You don't necessarily need tons of plot to make the PCs wish that that darn artifact had gone anywhere other than Droaam... PCs sign up with caravan, caravan runs into trolls mounted on catoblepas, caravan massacred, PCs run for the hills pursued by displacer beasts, PCs evade pursuit but are trapped between monstrous warbands, PCs fight their way through only to be rediscovered by the original ambushers, PCs have showdown amidst dragonshard field at midnight, are discovered the next day by Tharask prospectors who nurse them back to health, Tharask prospectors turn out to be Tarkanan agents, etc.. Droaam is the wild west on 'roids.
naturax 12-02-07, 09:41 AM	Depending on how much fighting you want, Droaam just screams for hard on, balls to the walls combat. This is monster land--anarchic, dangerous, and above all, violent. You don't necessarily need tons of plot to make the PCs wish that that darn artifact had gone anywhere other than Droaam... PCs sign up with caravan, caravan runs into trolls mounted on catoblepas, caravan massacred, PCs run for the hills pursued by displacer beasts, PCs evade pursuit but are trapped between monstrous warbands, PCs fight their way through only to be rediscovered by the original ambushers, PCs have showdown amidst dragonshard field at midnight, are discovered the next day by Tharask prospectors who nurse them back to health, Tharask prospectors turn out to be Tarkanan agents, etc.. Droaam is the wild west on 'roids. I like your thinking. I've just started watching Trigun, so I think I'm going to take a lot of inspiration from that style of setting up encounters. How would you handle getting to the realm of the medusas and finding the artifact?
Yakman 12-02-07, 04:14 PM	I like your thinking. I've just started watching Trigun, so I think I'm going to take a lot of inspiration from that style of setting up encounters. How would you handle getting to the realm of the medusas and finding the artifact? Well, by the time the PCs get to the realm of the medusas, it will likely seem like quite a relief... except for the fact that this wonderful NPC that they brought along has been digesting in an ogre's gullet for three weeks. Because they will no longer be able to go head-to-head vs. the medusas, or even negotiate with them, it will be a huge problem. What once could have been solved through diplomacy will now have to be solved through violence, dragging the PCs even further into the ruthless nature of the realm of the Sora Kel. The Arcanix mages searching for the weapon might even be allied with in an assault on the medusae, or perhaps a rogue warband that has feuded with the medusae... or maybe the PCs will have to assault the medusa stronghold alone, weakened from weeks of living on the run, they have one last titanic struggle to reach their goal.....
naturax 12-02-07, 06:34 PM	Well, by the time the PCs get to the realm of the medusas, it will likely seem like quite a relief... except for the fact that this wonderful NPC that they brought along has been digesting in an ogre's gullet for three weeks. Because they will no longer be able to go head-to-head vs. the medusas, or even negotiate with them, it will be a huge problem. What once could have been solved through diplomacy will now have to be solved through violence, dragging the PCs even further into the ruthless nature of the realm of the Sora Kel. The Arcanix mages searching for the weapon might even be allied with in an assault on the medusae, or perhaps a rogue warband that has feuded with the medusae... or maybe the PCs will have to assault the medusa stronghold alone, weakened from weeks of living on the run, they have one last titanic struggle to reach their goal..... Cool. I really appreciate your help with this. It's a different style of runnings things for me, but sounds like a lot of fun.
Yakman 12-02-07, 08:32 PM	Cool. I really appreciate your help with this. It's a different style of runnings things for me, but sounds like a lot of fun.i dunno how loyal your pcs are to their employers, but perhaps the mages of arcanix might prove to be a better opportunity than their present paymasters... upon looking at the map, I think it might be interesting to let the PCs get all the way to the Great Crag in relatively good order and then head out with the caravan bound for Patrahk'n hoping to break off at some point for Cazhaak Draal. However, in the wilderness east of the Great Crag, that's where the ambush happens. This way we've set up the PCs that Droaam isn't such an awful place--then you hit them in the face with the brutal reality of the world.
Alas 12-06-07, 04:32 PM	Naturax, it's mentioned here and there that some medusas hire out as mercenaries with Deneith from time to time. It's conceivable that the party could hook up with some homeward-bound medusa who's enough of a black sheep that she's willing to get them into Cazhaak Draal. After the wild-west-road-trip to get to the city, the adventure could then become a sort of political caper. Maybe those medusa mercenaries were really out there to train and bulk-up for a coup-- if the party is willing to land the first strike against the Queen of Stone, the rebels will let them have their artifact and safe passage out of the country. The Daughters of Sora Kell may or may not have a stake in all this... Just so you know where I'm coming from, I've done some musing on Droaamite medusas in the past: Personality Medusas tend to be self-centered and demanding; it's natural to expect to get your own way when you can petrify someone by staring them down. On the other hand, they also seem to crave recognition, and will actively pursue challenges to prove their monstrous reputations or artistic prowess. Medusas consider archery and hunting fine sports (for true combat they rely more on their gaze and poison), and fancy themselves sophisticated appreciators of literature and architecture. Collecting books, jewelry, and artistically petrified creatures are also popular passtimes, not to mention excellent demonstrations of success. Relations Medusas do not make friends; they fear no one, and enjoy being feared. They follow the Daughters of Sora Kell because they respect their strength, and they rule small bands of humanoids because they appreciate the cheap labor. Alignment It's hard for a girl to grow up Good when she knows that she will one day kill anyone with whom she makes eye contact. Even the most social medusas are proud, vain, selfish, insensitive, and cruel. If others choose to call them Evil for simply being who they are, then so be it. Lands For ages, medusas ruled small enclaves and retreats in the depths of Khyber, raising their daughters and practicing their traditions away from the light of day. Now they walk the streets of The Great Crag and the allies of Sharn, and call the ruins of Cazaak Draal their capital city. Religion Two radically different trends prevail among theological medusas. Most tend towards privacy in their beliefs, and prefer contemplating the mystery of the gods to joining in shared rites. They favor the Dark Six (especially The Shadow and The Keeper) over the Sovereign Host, and may have their own peculiar, esoteric interpretations of the entire pantheon. The more vocal and visible medusa divines lead cults of the Dragon Below, and delight in holding temporal and spiritual power over their flock. Language Most medusas are raised speaking Undercommon as a first language. Most also study Serpentine, a subtle sign language conveyed by their animate hair. An intelligent medusa also learns Common, Goblin, or Giant, the better to command her servitors. Names Medusas prefer noble, classic, and elegant sounding names. They are especially fond of grand and imposing titles; as observers have noted, "Every medusa is ready to be crowned queen of her own half-mile." Until they have the personal clout to back up such titles, they may use a matronymic to warn others of their lineage.
naturax 12-06-07, 05:49 PM	Naturax, it's mentioned here and there that some medusas hire out as mercenaries with Deneith from time to time. It's conceivable that the party could hook up with some homeward-bound medusa who's enough of a black sheep that she's willing to get them into Cazhaak Draal. After the wild-west-road-trip to get to the city, the adventure could then become a sort of political caper. Maybe those medusa mercenaries were really out there to train and bulk-up for a coup-- if the party is willing to land the first strike against the Queen of Stone, the rebels will let them have their artifact and safe passage out of the country. The Daughters of Sora Kell may or may not have a stake in all this... That's a really really cool concept! I love the idea of a medua NPC that helps them out. I'm going to basically skip from Sharn to Graywall since I lack inspiration for running the trip through Breland, but a medusa in Graywall who has a certain reputation and will journey with them through the Barrens would work quite nicely. Thanks for typing this up, I really appreciate it and I'm sure to use it!
naturax 12-08-07, 06:08 PM	I've done some more thinking and here's what I've got right now: PC shows up in Graywall and meets a contact there. The PC is a member of the Tyrants, and the contact will direct the PCs to talk to a particular medusa (in a similar vein to what Alas was talking about) that might be able to help them out. This medusa, who isn't part of regular medusa society, instead runs a game of Six Stones every week for a huge prize. For some reason the PC has to win a game of Six Stones in order for the medusa to talk to him: maybe it's a favour because the medusa doesn't want to pay out the huge prize that was offered, or maybe it's just for his (the medusa will be male) own personal amusement. Also, as the PC is asking around, they will hear that a couple of others are looking into the same sort of thing: the wizards from Arcanix who want to recover the weapon. I need to flesh out the representatives from Arcanix and maybe there will be a confrontation. Maybe they also have to compete in the game of Six Stones and the winner will be the one who the medusa aids? After I figure out the chapter in Graywall, I need the medusa to be able to provide a description of Cazhaak Draal itself, and I know it's a fallen Dhakanni metropolis, but I'd love to hear some ideas about how to handle that part. Should the statue (the weapon is actually a petrified sorcerer tied to Fernia: Eberron's equivalent of River Tam in a box) be hidden in plain sight? Or in an underground catacombs? Or at the gateway to Khyber? There is a key scene that I have to play out: the NPC that's going along is the "weapon's" brother, and at a certain point he needs to get petrified in order to find out exactly where she is or how to find her. When he's petrified, his spirit will go to the same realm as hers and she'll be able to give him a message, and then when the NPC is fixed he'll possess the last piece of the puzzle (see, in my Eberron, when you get petrified, your body gets switched with an equal amount of stone from Lamannia). But coming up with the particular encounter that'll include this act is rather challenging for me. Any ideas on the specifics? Thanks!
Alas 12-12-07, 04:15 PM	But coming up with the particular encounter that'll include this act is rather challenging for me. Any ideas on the specifics?I would think the easiest solution is to have Sim-- er, the brother, be part of the same rigged Six Stones game as the PCs. Interesting angle: if the game is rigged so the PCs win (and the medusa keeps its stakes), then the true encounter isn't necessarily the Six Stones game itself, but dealing with suspicious bettors afterwards. The party knows they'll survive the cockatrice, but can they get past the disgruntled minotaur thugs? I'd love to spend a few days writing up a description of Cazhaak Draal, but you probably need something sooner, so here's my suggestion: Go to any other campaign sourcebook, like one of the Forgotten Realms sourcebooks, or maybe something from an issue of Dungeon, and find a city map in there. Copy that, edit it so about three quarters of the buildings are ruins, and relabel it as appropriate for Cazhaak Draal. You'll want to note the palace for the Queen of Stone, maybe a temple or two, and significant clusters of minions (goblin tents, ogre lairs, and so forth). Even after 20 years, the number of buildings that have been restored into proper estates for the medusa nobility of the city are probably low, and I'd expect a fair number of them to be partially dungeons. Add charming notes like "Via Statua," the street lined with the petrified enemies of the city, and of course, Khyber's Gate. I rather like the idea of the critical weapon being hidden in plain sight, purloined-letter style, along with scores of other statues in the middle of the city. Very easy to find, but very difficult to abscond with.
naturax 12-12-07, 05:17 PM	Hey Alas, thanks again for your comments! I would think the easiest solution is to have Sim-- er, the brother, be part of the same rigged Six Stones game as the PCs. Interesting angle: if the game is rigged so the PCs win (and the medusa keeps its stakes), then the true encounter isn't necessarily the Six Stones game itself, but dealing with suspicious bettors afterwards. The party knows they'll survive the cockatrice, but can they get past the disgruntled minotaur thugs? I ended up having an idea for the game, but an incomplete one, so I posted it in a separate thread: http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=964562 Here are the relevant bits: If anyone can think of any excuses why the PC has to fight and win in the game of Six Stones, I'd really appreciate any suggestions. It could just be for the personal amusement of the medusa, or simply that their seventh player dropped out recently and the medusa running it needs one more... and no one around is insane enough to play against the six champions that are in the game, nor do they have enough money to cover the entry fee - so the medusa will cover it personally. Sound reasonable? Simon Tam, in this game, would literally be killed in the game of Six Stones - and besides, the game is an opportunity for the PC, who's a monk, to have a really cool fight scene. So I guess the PC could champion him, if necessary? Or how exactly do you see the game getting rigged? I'd love some more details on this point, as it's still rather murky in my head. I'd love to spend a few days writing up a description of Cazhaak Draal, but you probably need something sooner, so here's my suggestion: Go to any other campaign sourcebook, like one of the Forgotten Realms sourcebooks, or maybe something from an issue of Dungeon, and find a city map in there. Copy that, edit it so about three quarters of the buildings are ruins, and relabel it as appropriate for Cazhaak Draal. You'll want to note the palace for the Queen of Stone, maybe a temple or two, and significant clusters of minions (goblin tents, ogre lairs, and so forth). Even after 20 years, the number of buildings that have been restored into proper estates for the medusa nobility of the city are probably low, and I'd expect a fair number of them to be partially dungeons. Add charming notes like "Via Statua," the street lined with the petrified enemies of the city, and of course, Khyber's Gate. I rather like the idea of the critical weapon being hidden in plain sight, purloined-letter style, along with scores of other statues in the middle of the city. Very easy to find, but very difficult to abscond with. Those ideas sound great, so I'm going to go with something like that. Can you point to any online sources in particular that would be good for inspiration? And, if you're willing to write something up in the next few days, I'd really appreciate it. Next session will only be the game of Six Stones, so I have a couple of weeks before anyone gets near Cazhaak Draal.
Alas 12-17-07, 03:28 PM	Naturax, I'll see what I can come up with for Cazhaak Draal. I've been wanting to do something with it anyways. As for the Six Stones game: if memory serves, the game is basically "toss six people in a pit with a cockatrice; last one un-petrified is the winner." Isn't it? The variables are who you put into the pit, and the nature of the "pit." Petrification doesn't have to be permanent-- especially if the medusa (or maedar?) is on your side. See Keith Baker's Dragonshard on medusas for the "medusa's kiss" de-petrification spell-- it's fairly plausible for a medusa gangster to have a scroll or two of that on hand. So, rigging the game: The medusa lets the players know that he's in over his head in Greywall. An ogre mage or two (perhaps members of Daask?) have decided to take over his business. They're backing a few players for the next match, and they've bet more than he can cover. He needs certain victory, and the players are the only people the ogres haven't bought. If they play and win, he'll help them out. The arena for the match will be the "stone forest" style arena. The pit is bristling with a series of 10-ft high poles spaced 5 or 10ft apart. The poles are sturdy enough to support a Medium or smaller humanoid's weight, and positioned so that a person can jump from one to another. However, some of the poles are rigged to fall over if they're jumped onto. The cockatrice for this match has clipped wings: it can run along the ground, or jump from pole top to pole top without snapping them. The basic idea is to hop around from pole to pole, dodging the cockatrice and the other players. Everybody knows about the rigged poles, but the medusa knows which ones they are, and can tell the PCs in advance. The basic idea is that the monk PC gets to pull a little Iron Monkey action, dancing around the top of the good poles and maneuvering his opponents (mostly shifters and goblins with excellent Jump and Climb scores) onto the bad poles. No weapons allowed, so unarmed attacks are a plus (though hitting the cockatrice-- or should it be cockatrices?-- is a disqualifier). If the Simon goes in as a roster-filler (and what better way to demonstrate that the medusa isn't rigging the game), then curing him after the match would be part of the medusa's deal. Of course, the PCs will also have to deal with some Bricktop-type post-match dust up with the ogre mages, who will be looking to feed the PCs to some pigs.
naturax 12-17-07, 03:57 PM	Alas, I am continually blown away by the quality of your ideas. I'm absolutely going to use the idea of the medusa getting in over its head, and I especially like the idea of the Simon character (useless in this sort of encounter) stuck in the fight! The PC will have to worry about the other combatants, keeping Simon alive, and avoiding the cockatrice! I'm going to add this to my write-up and post my finalized version. And of course I'll let you know how it all ended up happening when the session is over. So thanks again!
Alas 12-17-07, 06:47 PM	Naturax, you can find ready-to-go maps in the Map-a-Week archives on the main site. For my version of Cazhaak Draal, I plan to use the city of Four Winds as the template and punch a bunch of holes in it.
naturax 02-12-08, 11:41 AM	It took a couple of months for me to get a couple of games in, but this is how things have gone so far: The PC and the NPC showed up in Graywall looking for information about how to steal an artifact from the King of Stone. The NPC went and got the two of them charged with consipiracy so that they would be thrown into the big game of Six Stones happening that night. This was done in order to help the medusa who was running the match to not default on gambling winnings (as was suggested above). The PC won the match and the NPC was petrified. The match was extremely exciting, by the way, and I totally went with a bunch of shields on top of long metal poles that would collapse. So thanks for those ideas! The PC was offered to be sent via prisoner transport up to Cazhaak Draal and accepted, planning to leave the next morning. Afterwards, the NPC was brought to the room, slowly recovering from petrification (I play that a Medusa's Kiss takes a few minutes to kick in). He wakes up sobbing that he's sorry, so sorry, because he's had a vision: a vision that his sister is being held in the King of Stone's vast collection of priceless statues and he thinks the only way he's going to be able to free her is to offer the PC in exchange. So he's planning to betray the PC. So when the NPC learns about the prisoner transport idea, he convinces the PC that he's had a vision of them getting ambushed by the medusas and turned to stone, so they shouldn't trust the transport, instead they should break out of the holding facility and find their own way to Cazhaak Draal. The PC agrees. So they broke out, and had to buy off the harpy mobster who just lost money betting on someone other than the PC with their winnings from the match, and the NPC led them a disgraced, exiled gnomish artificer by the name of Botch. He agreed to fly them to Cazhaak Draal in his water-elemental powered gyrocopter if they help him clear his name back in Zilargo. That's where the last session ended. They are flying over Droaam and I need to figure out a way to turn the entirety of Cazhaak Draal into a few encounters. I want them to see the landscape slowly becoming stoney, noticing the isolated medusa settlements, and they should be able to sneak in... but sneak where? And how will they know where to go? So stuff needs to happen. I need help with this part. Eventually I want a big confrontation with the King of Stone in the middle of his throneroom with dozens of medusas and gorgons and basilisks around. Maybe the PC and NPC got caught? At this point, the NPC will turn around and say, "look, I'll offer you a deal in exchange for Fernia's Chosen: how would you like a DOPPELGANGER?" (this will be exceptionall traumatic for the PC since the character has not revealed to the NPC that he is a doppelganger). However, the NPC will do the following: cast sleep + hold monster + an illusion to make it LOOK like the PC is petrified (by DM fiat this will actually fool the King of Stones and everyone else) with the intent of coming back to rescue him later, after he takes his sister out of there. The PC will not know that, and it will feel like getting petrified, except the PC will wake up a few hours later, hurt and betrayed, and in the middle of the King of Stone's palace, and try to find a way to escape. I don't think the NPC will actually be able to come back and rescue the PC, though, since I think waking up his sister will cause a huge problem. Or the Wizard from Arcanix that has been tracking down Fernia's Chosen with the intent to rescue her will choose that moment to show up and teleport them out of there, leaving the NPC actually unable to come back for the PC. I'm not sure how the gnome fits into all this, and if he's still waiting to get them out of there or not. So I think I've got some good concepts, but I could use suggestions for how to actually make it all happen. Any thoughts are extremely welcome! Thanks!
naturax 02-17-08, 08:57 PM	I ended up running this plot by having the PC waltz through town invisible and just show up at the palace of the Queen of Stone. Long story short, they killed the Queen, were abandoned by the gnome with the gyrocopter, and now have to wander the wilderness of Droaam on foot trying to find the Byeshk mines in order to free the warforged prisoners of war who are enslaved there. Any ideas you can throw out for exciting things to have happen on the way? Being chased by angry medusas, perhaps?