Post/Author/DateTime	Post
DaemeonBlack 01-13-04, 06:29 PM	I was watching a preview of the movie "The Butterfly Effect" and I got the idea for a D&D campaign. The idea of the movie got me really inspired to create an adventure that eventually turned into a campaign idea for D&D. The basic idea I had was for creating divergent time-lines and having the PC's visit them by reading a journal so I threw some extra mental funk on the imaginary fire and came up with the following. The characters uncover the plot of an apocalyptic cult (whoever fits your game, mine it is the Te'kuchal) that are trying to find a journal that can lead to the destruction of not only this world but of others as well. They learn the cult has sent bounty hunters, trackers, and other unsavory sorts to look for a mage known as Jord, who has knowledge of this journal and may even have it on his person. He knows he is being sought after so he takes flight The PC's follow some clues from the cults agents until they finally rescue Jord from the mercs that where trying to take him back. Jord tells the PC's of his old master, Ranthorne, and about the journal the cult sought. The man, Ranthorne, was a powerful Wizard that used his magic to help the local farmers and millers, he lit the streets with magic and entertained the children with illusionary displays. He was a noble benefactor and friend to the people of the town. He had been spending more and more time in his workshop for a couple of weeks prior to his disappearance, when he just disappeared without a word to anyone, not even his apprentice Jord. They spent some time looking for the Wizard until after a year, they gave up the search, fearing he had left on his own and would not likely return, to the sadness of his friends, his apprentice Jord, and the whole village. Ranthorne had found a tome in one of his expeditions of some ruins a few miles from the town. He initialy began to create a journal of what he discovered in the tome, only to have the work seem to take on a will of its own. The Wizard would stay awake for 3-4 days at a time madly scribing notes and formula into the journal as he deciphered the text. As he was nearing completion he simply vanished one night as Jord slept. Jord awoke to find the tome, journal and master all gone, not even a note was left behind, though oddly the Wizards trusty staff was where he always kept it when he was at home. After 8 years he re-appeared in the middle of town without a warning, clothes torn, beaten and bruised, seeming 20 years older in his appearance. He was muttering incoherently, stumbling around oblivious to what was going on around him. Ranthorne grabbed one of the men in the gathering crowd, much to his surprise, and started sobbing "I have done something horrible, I have broken the laws of the universe and all is lost. Forgive me my friends." as he slumped to the ground unconscious. After the Wizard returned his apprentice found the journal amongst his belongings with several of the pages missing and the original tome was not present at all. Before Jord could delve into the journal Ranthorne had a moment of lucidity and warned his apprentice that he needed to recover the pages but he should not do so himself for the danger was too great, he must enlist help from others for he would surely perish alone. The madman lost his train of thought and slipped back into madness and incoherent ramblings before Jord could inquire further. The look of horror and desperation in the wizards eyes was so intense that Jord hid the book and never thought to look into its secrets again. Over the next 2 years, in the Madman s rambling, he often made no sense but what the young mage could decipher he talked of other places that are similar to our world but strange in many ways. He talked of mechanical armies and vampiric overlords, of artificial islands in an infinite sea and a war between demons and devils run over the entire world. He also talked of the ancient tome he found that taught of how to create magic to alter reality to that of the wielder s desires, and how he used this fell magic to create the journal that would sunder all of reality. He talked of how his translations shattered the universe into several pieces, and each piece had a life of its own. If these pieces learned of the others, they would surely war and tear the fabric of the universe even further. He talked of the pages in his journal being torn asunder and sent the the pieces that where created from the magic within each page. He talked of journeying to these places to recover the pages to mend the journal and repair the torn universe. He spoke of only succeeding in recovering 4 pages in the entire time he was gone. He warned of needing to return the journal to a whole and reading the entire thing in one sitting to restore the shattered realities and mend the universe he sundered in his arrogance. The madman finally died of what seemed like sheer exhaustion and remorse for unknown crimes. After the Wizard died there was a grand funeral from the town for their beloved friends passing. After the funeral Jord was approached by a halfling offering to buy the Wizards works for a very generous sum. Jord of course refused to allow someone to buy something so dangerous. That night someone broke into the manor setting off the magical alarms. Jord quickly gathered his old masters Journal, his own notes on what the Wizard had said in his ramblings, and anything else he could carry, escaping through the hidden exit in the rear. He stole past the armed men surrounding his home and fled away into the night, the flames of his home for so long framing the sky at his back. Jord, after telling his story to the characters, asks them to take the notes and responsibility, as it is too dangerous to fall into the wrong hands. He also implores the characters to follow where his master left off and he was too scared to pursue, to mend the universe repairing the damage his late master caused in his own hubris. As the PC's read the first couple of lines in the journal the world around them shimmers and they find themselves somewhere else.........
DaemeonBlack 01-13-04, 06:30 PM	I posted this lengthy thing on here for 2 reasons. The first to let someone else use the idea if they like it. The second is for help on more alternate worlds the PC's can visit using the formula contained in the journal. I have the world ideas of - Steam-punk World: A world where magic is just another science alongside steam power and hydraulics. This world has firearms (still dangerous and unreliable), zeppelins, trains, clockwork soldiers, and iron-clads. There is a great "cold war" between the Allied nations (humans, elves, dwarves, other "good" races) and the frozen northern (think Russia with Hobgoblin and Drow leaders, other "evil" humanoids) who seek domination over the whole world. Lots of spies, secret agents, and intrigue around every corner. Vampire World: The Night King sits above his throne of blood under the permanent night sky created by the artifact known as the Sun-drinker as he has for the last 1000 years. All of the known lands are controlled by the Vampires and their loyal followers, all the rest are slaves/food stock. The vampires population is kept in constant check by the Nigh-Kings laws and the Blood Stones, magic items that create blood so the vampires do not need to feed off the living, but it is still preferable to do so as it is just better eats. The vampires have an entire cast of living servitors that control most of the day to day functions of society and have magical tattoos on their palms (looks like 2 glowing blue fangs) that they bare as a greeting in all encounters to prove they are loyal to their un-living gods. If someone does not return the greeting or does not have the tattoo they are escaped or un-escorted slaves, they can be killed or captured on the spot as per the loyalists discretion. Water-world: The world used to have a normal amount of land-mass, or so the legends tell before the great rock from the sky caused the world to flood. Now there are very few land-masses left (about 8% of the planets surface) but the previous land dwelling races survived by through magic and ingenuity. They created great floating cities upon the water and in the sky, and air filled cities under the surface of the endless waves. Currently the Sea races (Merefolk, Locathah, Sahuagin, etc.) control most of the world and the "land" races exist mostly amongst the clouds in lying ships and floating cities, using the floating cities as the trade areas amongst the water folk of the world. It is said that beneath the bottom of the waves, even below the endless oceans floor, deep underground, that there are caverns still filled with Surface races and air, just waiting for the right time to change the world back to its previous state, but how they would do this no one knows for certain? Blood-war World: The ancient blood-war between the Demons and Devils finally spilled over to the Prime Material plane, forever changing the face of the world. The war still rages today in full force, from the Demons using their mortal hordes of goblinoids clashing with the forces the Devils mortal Hobgoblin/Drow elite forces to the Celestial armies with their mortal followers battling both sides in the conflict. It is a world of constant conflict, forging powerful souls in the temper of war. I also threw around the ideas of - Prehistoric World: With stone tools and fire as the highest technology, savages all around, no form of witting just pictograms, and primitive languages. Dinosaurs and wild magic, cave-dwarves and untamed jungles. High magic/pulp heroes World: Basically Eberron. I would like to hear other interesting world ideas from the great talent we have on this site.