casting out the "idea net" [Archive] - Wizards Community

casting out the "idea net" [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
temparus2000
11-01-07, 09:38 PM I have no short supply of good ideas, but I see no reason to not readily use the tool of the internet. The group I DM is an CG elf fighter/rouge, LN elf knight, LG human paladin, LN human sorcerer, NG human cleric, and NG gnome enchanter. All level 12.
The world is politic-heavy with strong racial tensions (but not to the point of war). There is the usual sinister, lurking force trying to take over the world (a large sect of LE humans allied with devils). The world is large and has every type of terrain, so any creature type is fair game. There is a strong theme of dragons (true dragons), the good ones are gone from the world. The evil ones used to be allied with the LE humans but now are free-roaming and serve their own individual purposes, though there are hints that they might once again form an alliance.
Does any of this spark any cool ideas with anyone? I'm not asking for anything specific, I'm just casting out the idea net and seeing what gets caught.
LFK
11-01-07, 09:54 PM Land claim dispute.
LFK
11-01-07, 10:04 PM Double post! Woo!
Sezarious
11-01-07, 10:07 PM I'm going to make the assumption that Dragon Riders would have been in the history books. If not, you could use them.
Having Dragon themed Masterwork armor would be nice. The idea of dragon philosophy, the way gold dragons acting as generals wheras others might say that the whole idea of war between humans doesn't affect them.
Maybe the group might find a dragon egg as treasure to look after.
Pseudodragon Familiars might get a bonous or grow in size as a mage levels up. They could become a mount for the mage.
I have no doubt that you will have thought of most of this stuff, but i'm just making some suggestions so, you know.
Amon_V
11-02-07, 04:11 AM Here's a good one.

No one in the party is a Dwarf; so in the next arc, dwarves from a nearly mystical cave complex below a desert are nearly finished with a thousand year plan to expand their influence over the Human/Devil alliance. By breaking the pacts and forcing the two against each other, the Dwarves will grab a great opportunity to defeat a great evil.

The Devils aren't stupid, however, and they are determined to stop the plan before it comes to fruition. But they don't know what exactly it is...

Enter the PCs; as they get involved, they will be used against the plan, and eventually get to decide whether the dwarven plan goes through (and the Devil-Human alliance is broken) or whether its better to keep the status quo intact.
temparus2000
11-02-07, 05:18 PM Here's a good one.

No one in the party is a Dwarf; so in the next arc, dwarves from a nearly mystical cave complex below a desert are nearly finished with a thousand year plan to expand their influence over the Human/Devil alliance. By breaking the pacts and forcing the two against each other, the Dwarves will grab a great opportunity to defeat a great evil.

The Devils aren't stupid, however, and they are determined to stop the plan before it comes to fruition. But they don't know what exactly it is...

Enter the PCs; as they get involved, they will be used against the plan, and eventually get to decide whether the dwarven plan goes through (and the Devil-Human alliance is broken) or whether its better to keep the status quo intact.

I like this alot, I'll definately incorporate some of it. This is pretty much exactly the sort of thing I was looking for. Thanks!
temparus2000
11-02-07, 05:20 PM I'm going to make the assumption that Dragon Riders would have been in the history books. If not, you could use them.
Having Dragon themed Masterwork armor would be nice. The idea of dragon philosophy, the way gold dragons acting as generals wheras others might say that the whole idea of war between humans doesn't affect them.
Maybe the group might find a dragon egg as treasure to look after.
Pseudodragon Familiars might get a bonous or grow in size as a mage levels up. They could become a mount for the mage.
I have no doubt that you will have thought of most of this stuff, but i'm just making some suggestions so, you know.

I actually try to play the dragons as extremely arrogant (even the good ones were, back when they were around), so the idea of being a mount would seem demeaning to the point of insult (in this world). Finding the egg of a good dragon is something I like, though. good idea.
Frankencow
11-03-07, 02:39 AM How about a recent crossing over of Dwarven and Dragon culture occuring on some border that leads to an eventual alliance of the two races in the region? Dwarves and Dragons living near each other underground, dwarves need gold and fire to forge their weapons both of which dragons can provide and dragons need opposable thumbs to craft useful Dragon sized items, which dwarves can do. It only makes sense that the economy would eventually drive these two races to become business partners, allies, and maybe even a symbiotic culture.
Frankencow
11-03-07, 02:58 AM Even the most arrogant of Dragons (perhaps especially the arrogant) need Epic dragon-sized gear and paid Dwarven flunkies. Why leave the cave at all when dwarves could supply whole farms' worth of food when needed? A barrel of Dwarven Ale makes for a nice refreshing beverage and a boat is like a floating six pack.
Stuffburger
11-03-07, 03:51 AM Without good dragons, some other powerful force could be keeping the evil dragons from taking over.

Perhaps a shadowy, good aligned spy network that plays the evil dragons off one another?
Sezarious
11-03-07, 08:35 AM Even the most arrogant of Dragons (perhaps especially the arrogant) need Epic dragon-sized gear and paid Dwarven flunkies. Why leave the cave at all when dwarves could supply whole farms' worth of food when needed? A barrel of Dwarven Ale makes for a nice refreshing beverage and a boat is like a floating six pack.

This would be a really good addition to the Dwarven forces. The Dragons could add a little extra firepower (hehe) or act as guardians to the dwarven cities. Maybe outsiders could be afraid of the desert because of the high Dragon population. The dragons hunt in the desert (keeping away curious or suspicious outside dangers) and nest deep under where their eggs are under the safe protection of the Dwarves. Perhaps you could consider the Dragons to NOT be arrogant towards the Dwarves and to in fact hold high respects for them (and vice versa). The Dwarves, because they work with Dragons, do dragon themed armor. If a party member amongst your players is Dwarven (perhaps from another area or perhaps even banished for some reason), perhaps they may help them in diplomacy when the party meets up with this civilisation.
The only thing about the dragon egg is who would have it? Then, when it hatches, would it be considered shared evenly around the group like a family dog, or maybe it might favor the druid for his close links to nature, or the fighter, cleric or paladin for their scale mail? Maybe you could have it favour the character who likes it least? Make it cuddle up to them, then when they shoo it away, have it tip its head in a curious fashion.
"Get away you stupid fat lizard"
"Bruughhow?"
Introducing the egg might be awkward, as the dragons' mother might find the party eventually and, either the party will have to give the little guy back, or kill the mother (a bit sad). Maybe the party finds the mother attacked by poachers, kills them, tries to save the mother (if they have a cleric), fails:weep: , then promises to take care of the lad.
temparus2000
11-03-07, 09:41 AM Evil dragons allying with dwarves (some of them, as in a particular clan, since I don't want all dwarves allying with evil) is good stuff. I'd need a better reason than "they make stuff for the dragons", though. (most) Dragons DO have opposable thumbs when they polymorph, and would be better than dwarves at making items since they are far older.
Using the dwarves to protect their hoardes? Both as guards and trap-makers? that's an idea NO dragon can turn down, no matter how arrogant.

Any other ideas would me most appreciated.
temparus2000
11-03-07, 09:43 AM Without good dragons, some other powerful force could be keeping the evil dragons from taking over.

Perhaps a shadowy, good aligned spy network that plays the evil dragons off one another?

that's pretty much how it is, but there isno good-aligned network, just those of the dragons themselves. The evil dragons effectively prevent THEMSELVES from taking over.
Sezarious
11-03-07, 10:19 AM Well it's just a bit of a 2 way relationship. The Dwarves effectively have Dragons Patrolling their lands, while they play the neighbor who feeds the goldfish whilst the Dragon's out. I don't know if Dragons would trust Dwarves getting too close though. The Dwaves would need to have a VERY good history for NOT stealing from the hoards in a proffesional Banker sort of way. Perhaps if the players wanted to break up the society, they could perform some robberies and have Dwarves framed. This would make the Dragons VERY untrustworthy VERY quickly.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
temparus2000 11-01-07, 09:38 PM	I have no short supply of good ideas, but I see no reason to not readily use the tool of the internet. The group I DM is an CG elf fighter/rouge, LN elf knight, LG human paladin, LN human sorcerer, NG human cleric, and NG gnome enchanter. All level 12. The world is politic-heavy with strong racial tensions (but not to the point of war). There is the usual sinister, lurking force trying to take over the world (a large sect of LE humans allied with devils). The world is large and has every type of terrain, so any creature type is fair game. There is a strong theme of dragons (true dragons), the good ones are gone from the world. The evil ones used to be allied with the LE humans but now are free-roaming and serve their own individual purposes, though there are hints that they might once again form an alliance. Does any of this spark any cool ideas with anyone? I'm not asking for anything specific, I'm just casting out the idea net and seeing what gets caught.
LFK 11-01-07, 09:54 PM	Land claim dispute.
LFK 11-01-07, 10:04 PM	Double post! Woo!
Sezarious 11-01-07, 10:07 PM	I'm going to make the assumption that Dragon Riders would have been in the history books. If not, you could use them. Having Dragon themed Masterwork armor would be nice. The idea of dragon philosophy, the way gold dragons acting as generals wheras others might say that the whole idea of war between humans doesn't affect them. Maybe the group might find a dragon egg as treasure to look after. Pseudodragon Familiars might get a bonous or grow in size as a mage levels up. They could become a mount for the mage. I have no doubt that you will have thought of most of this stuff, but i'm just making some suggestions so, you know.
Amon_V 11-02-07, 04:11 AM	Here's a good one. No one in the party is a Dwarf; so in the next arc, dwarves from a nearly mystical cave complex below a desert are nearly finished with a thousand year plan to expand their influence over the Human/Devil alliance. By breaking the pacts and forcing the two against each other, the Dwarves will grab a great opportunity to defeat a great evil. The Devils aren't stupid, however, and they are determined to stop the plan before it comes to fruition. But they don't know what exactly it is... Enter the PCs; as they get involved, they will be used against the plan, and eventually get to decide whether the dwarven plan goes through (and the Devil-Human alliance is broken) or whether its better to keep the status quo intact.
temparus2000 11-02-07, 05:18 PM	Here's a good one. No one in the party is a Dwarf; so in the next arc, dwarves from a nearly mystical cave complex below a desert are nearly finished with a thousand year plan to expand their influence over the Human/Devil alliance. By breaking the pacts and forcing the two against each other, the Dwarves will grab a great opportunity to defeat a great evil. The Devils aren't stupid, however, and they are determined to stop the plan before it comes to fruition. But they don't know what exactly it is... Enter the PCs; as they get involved, they will be used against the plan, and eventually get to decide whether the dwarven plan goes through (and the Devil-Human alliance is broken) or whether its better to keep the status quo intact. I like this alot, I'll definately incorporate some of it. This is pretty much exactly the sort of thing I was looking for. Thanks!
temparus2000 11-02-07, 05:20 PM	I'm going to make the assumption that Dragon Riders would have been in the history books. If not, you could use them. Having Dragon themed Masterwork armor would be nice. The idea of dragon philosophy, the way gold dragons acting as generals wheras others might say that the whole idea of war between humans doesn't affect them. Maybe the group might find a dragon egg as treasure to look after. Pseudodragon Familiars might get a bonous or grow in size as a mage levels up. They could become a mount for the mage. I have no doubt that you will have thought of most of this stuff, but i'm just making some suggestions so, you know. I actually try to play the dragons as extremely arrogant (even the good ones were, back when they were around), so the idea of being a mount would seem demeaning to the point of insult (in this world). Finding the egg of a good dragon is something I like, though. good idea.
Frankencow 11-03-07, 02:39 AM	How about a recent crossing over of Dwarven and Dragon culture occuring on some border that leads to an eventual alliance of the two races in the region? Dwarves and Dragons living near each other underground, dwarves need gold and fire to forge their weapons both of which dragons can provide and dragons need opposable thumbs to craft useful Dragon sized items, which dwarves can do. It only makes sense that the economy would eventually drive these two races to become business partners, allies, and maybe even a symbiotic culture.
Frankencow 11-03-07, 02:58 AM	Even the most arrogant of Dragons (perhaps especially the arrogant) need Epic dragon-sized gear and paid Dwarven flunkies. Why leave the cave at all when dwarves could supply whole farms' worth of food when needed? A barrel of Dwarven Ale makes for a nice refreshing beverage and a boat is like a floating six pack.
Stuffburger 11-03-07, 03:51 AM	Without good dragons, some other powerful force could be keeping the evil dragons from taking over. Perhaps a shadowy, good aligned spy network that plays the evil dragons off one another?
Sezarious 11-03-07, 08:35 AM	Even the most arrogant of Dragons (perhaps especially the arrogant) need Epic dragon-sized gear and paid Dwarven flunkies. Why leave the cave at all when dwarves could supply whole farms' worth of food when needed? A barrel of Dwarven Ale makes for a nice refreshing beverage and a boat is like a floating six pack. This would be a really good addition to the Dwarven forces. The Dragons could add a little extra firepower (hehe) or act as guardians to the dwarven cities. Maybe outsiders could be afraid of the desert because of the high Dragon population. The dragons hunt in the desert (keeping away curious or suspicious outside dangers) and nest deep under where their eggs are under the safe protection of the Dwarves. Perhaps you could consider the Dragons to NOT be arrogant towards the Dwarves and to in fact hold high respects for them (and vice versa). The Dwarves, because they work with Dragons, do dragon themed armor. If a party member amongst your players is Dwarven (perhaps from another area or perhaps even banished for some reason), perhaps they may help them in diplomacy when the party meets up with this civilisation. The only thing about the dragon egg is who would have it? Then, when it hatches, would it be considered shared evenly around the group like a family dog, or maybe it might favor the druid for his close links to nature, or the fighter, cleric or paladin for their scale mail? Maybe you could have it favour the character who likes it least? Make it cuddle up to them, then when they shoo it away, have it tip its head in a curious fashion. "Get away you stupid fat lizard" "Bruughhow?" Introducing the egg might be awkward, as the dragons' mother might find the party eventually and, either the party will have to give the little guy back, or kill the mother (a bit sad). Maybe the party finds the mother attacked by poachers, kills them, tries to save the mother (if they have a cleric), fails:weep: , then promises to take care of the lad.
temparus2000 11-03-07, 09:41 AM	Evil dragons allying with dwarves (some of them, as in a particular clan, since I don't want all dwarves allying with evil) is good stuff. I'd need a better reason than "they make stuff for the dragons", though. (most) Dragons DO have opposable thumbs when they polymorph, and would be better than dwarves at making items since they are far older. Using the dwarves to protect their hoardes? Both as guards and trap-makers? that's an idea NO dragon can turn down, no matter how arrogant. Any other ideas would me most appreciated.
temparus2000 11-03-07, 09:43 AM	Without good dragons, some other powerful force could be keeping the evil dragons from taking over. Perhaps a shadowy, good aligned spy network that plays the evil dragons off one another? that's pretty much how it is, but there isno good-aligned network, just those of the dragons themselves. The evil dragons effectively prevent THEMSELVES from taking over.
Sezarious 11-03-07, 10:19 AM	Well it's just a bit of a 2 way relationship. The Dwarves effectively have Dragons Patrolling their lands, while they play the neighbor who feeds the goldfish whilst the Dragon's out. I don't know if Dragons would trust Dwarves getting too close though. The Dwaves would need to have a VERY good history for NOT stealing from the hoards in a proffesional Banker sort of way. Perhaps if the players wanted to break up the society, they could perform some robberies and have Dwarves framed. This would make the Dragons VERY untrustworthy VERY quickly.