Post/Author/DateTime	Post
John Bezo 03-24-04, 01:04 AM	I am in the process of fleshing out the region that my players are in. They have in passing heard of a hermit that lives way out in the woods along the boarder of the earldom. They have had no reason to go out yet and I did not orginally plan for them to do so. But they are coming to a cross roads in the adventure where they will get to decide which of several paths to take. And since PC's will go where you least expect them to they will eventurally run into this hermit. So I want to have my bases covered. I came up with a basic idea that this hermit was either placed out there or agreed to be there maney years ago, to guard something important, that the former earl deemed important but to dangerous for the locals to have access to. over time the locals and the new earl have lost track of why this guy is out there. but what is he guarding. Just ideas if you have the time. BTW I am thinking that the hermit is a mid level ranger with a couple of levels of sorcorer. maybe 5/2 respectivly J.
Save_vs_DM 03-24-04, 01:13 AM	Just a few ideas to get you started: The tomb of a great hero that saved the kingdom who was killed in his prime. The kingdom at one time planned to save up enough money to have a true ressurection cast, but had to spend the money on something else. Twist: The have the wrong body: it was really the villian instead. The kingdom has almost enough money to bring him back, but a donation from the PCs will just give them enough (good way to introduce a new villain). Twist: The heroes body became animated and now roams the tomb as a mummy/zombie/skeleton/allip/other undead. If it was an allip, his babble has driven the hermit insane and now the hermit longs to bring PCs to the allip for it to feast on. The hermit simply guards a site that is sacred. Not magical, or divine, simply sacred. An old graveyard, are maybe the remains of the first village. The hermit guards a fabled "white stag" that is rumored to be able to do "something magical or powerful." To guard it, he hunts animals that would hunt the stag. The hermit has even forgotten what he is guarding. It is actually the hermit himself who must be guarded. He is actually a lycanthrope blessed with imortality and must chain himself to his cabin once a month. Once a generation the kings eldest son must visit the hermit and be blessed with the gift of lycanthropy. All I can think of at this time. Hope those helped, cheers, save-vs-dm
OmiKapSi 03-24-04, 02:56 AM	He's an agent for a green dragon who likes its privacy. He's trying to unravel the riddle that will give him access to an ancient sorcerers tomb. The last families of an ancient race of intelligent deer live in the woods. He is their gaurdian. His two brothers are positioned on the other two points of mystical convergence. The three of them are gathering power over the years for a massive magical ritual. He is the unwanted simulacrum of a great wizard, who somehow gained independence and a life of his own. He's a trans-dimensional being conducting a study on the types of people who travel remote areas. A great druid, as punishment for an ancient crime, sentenced him to life as a sort of human dryad. His tree is an ancient apple tree, who's fruit has powerful antimagical qualities. An old red dragon, tired of constant strife and difficulties brought on by it's size and fame, retired to this remote place. A secret cave holds it's treasure, but it only visits said treasure rarely, for fear of discovery.
Steelwill 03-24-04, 03:06 AM	He guards the tomb of the former ruler of the region, and has guarded the location of the body from the current rulers who sought to have it destroyed. If someone with enough power could ressurect the old ruler, they could learn the truth behind the nefarious regime currently dominating the land, and help restore things to the rightful order. He guards an ancient weapon, from a previous age, that could either be the ruin or salvation of the land, depending on who finds it. He guards a powerful scroll that will raise an army of (pick a God), and whomever finds and reads the scroll will control the army. He guards an ancient tomb, which, among other treasures, contains a map that leads to...(Next story arc). Hope these ideas were helpful, without knowing the level ranges, or your own future intentions as to the direction of the story, I don't know if these are what you were looking for. Good luck.
John Bezo 03-24-04, 08:36 PM	:)
JamesDruidDM 03-24-04, 08:48 PM	He could guard A keg of beer with special properties A glen on fae creatures A 4 leaf clover Baby ents A portal to the astral plane Hes actauly a guardian of the forest, protecting the grass
Findail 03-25-04, 10:05 AM	He's a simulacrum guarding the former Earl's phylactery. The old Earl is a lich (even though he looked normal). And now he's back...
Newpaintbrush 03-25-04, 10:41 AM	(Typical) Guarding the earl's descendant. Maybe it's an adopted son or daughter in line for the throne. Maybe it's a twisted creature that the earl couldn't bring himself to destroy. (Also Typical) Guarding the entrance to the Temple of (really bad stuff). He watches the temple, makes sure nobody goes in or out. Can't destroy the temple, as there's a curse on any that try. (more stuff) The hermit guards the mementos of the earl's past. Once, the earl was a carefree young lass. Then, all sorts of oddness ensued, and the earl ended up a man, and the leader of the region! And the earl doesn't want to discard the memories of those earlier days, although if found out, it would result in shocking disgrace. The hermit can be the earl's father! Yes, and throw in some attack bunnies. Those are always good, especially if blue. (the last is usable if tweaked to be serious . . . as is, it's pretty, um, odd.)
Gothic_Demon 03-25-04, 10:41 AM	The hermit is guarding the fact that he is the real Earl, and his younger, scheming brother (thought dead) is currently pretending to be the real Earl. Or maybe he's not, and he just tells the characters that to get them to help him bump off the Earl and take his place...
Dark Wanderer 03-25-04, 10:47 AM	the hermit is gaurding the entrance to an abandoned mine. the mine was once the most abundant source for silver in the area and had been worked hard for years until one day the miners uncovered a vein of black ore. Bane ore- Used primarily for weapons in the darker arts its material although weak can be infused with steel to add 1d4 vile damage. any hit with the weapon causes the weapon to bend slightly. the weapon must save DC 5 (no plusses) or break if the weapon breaks the chips left in the wound will cause the creature 1d6 pts vile damge per day until removed anyone within 30' of the vein must make a fortitude save DC 12 or become tainted a tainted individual will covet the vein and attack all who approach. The miners who found the vein killed their fellow miners and each other until only one survived. The king closed the mine and sent out parties to destroy the lone miner. the lone miner was killed in a public execution for his crimes (the city believes he was just crazy) and the king sent the hermit to keep all away.
grumpy DM 03-25-04, 11:56 AM	My personal favorite.....the guys just crazy. Everyone the Pc's run into doesn't need to have a purpose. Sometimes I just throw a crazy person in on them. Of course, the hermit doesn't think he's crazy and could send the pc's on many wild goose chases to recover the ULTIMATE ITEM OF DOOM or some such.
Lord Psynister 03-25-04, 03:14 PM	He's guarding the earl's most prized possession: Figurine of wondrous power, bronze griffon. The earl and the hermit were once the best of friends, often sneaking out in the middle of the night to right the griffon. However, his father soon found that the small sculpture he had given him was more than just a fancy looking rock, and sought to take the griffon as his mount into battle. The hermit however, had already discovered that he had "strange" abilities that were developing along with him, and so he unleashed that strange power when the earl's father came to take it, burning the flesh of the father's face, and ran away with the griffon. He's been hiding and protecting the figurine ever since. The damage he did to the father being the reason why he became a hermit rather than just hiding in a town or some such. He wasn't aware of how powerful and dangerous he was.