Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 ragingwookie Feb 15, 2009 13:17:24	Hey all, I'm just about to start my first adventure for my new campaign set in Sharn. Here's what I've got so far: The heroes are all hired by Morgrave University to go on a seemingly simple "artifact recovery" mission in Xen'drik. Their employer, a male dwarf named Koren Blackforge, appears to be a philanthropist interested in reclaiming the past, but he is actually a powerful member of the Blood of Vol, and wishes to give the artifacts he tricks adventurers into recovering to the lich queen herself. He has recently read about an ancient arcane weapon used by the giants against the quori of untold power. It is unclear exactly what this mighty weapon can do (even I haven't decided on that yet ;) ) Koren has hired the heroes because he has noticed their success on missions of this sort for Morgrave University in the past. The adventure begins in Sharn, and in the opening scene the PCs have a chance to speak with Koren about the mission at hand. That night, when the heroes are preparing to leave, they are approached by a mysterious warforged who tells them that they musn't give the treasures they find to Koren Blackforge. He goes by the name Cleaver and claims to be an agent of the Citadel. He also claims that Koren has been under investigation for the past few months and is a high ranking member of the Aurum. Cleaver wants to find some incriminating evidence on the dwarf to prove his guilt, but tells the heroes that if he moves in now, his status as a spy for the Brelish government will be compromised. Thus, if the heroes recover a mighty arcane weapon, that will be proof enough that Koren is part of a terror cell in Sharn. In actuality, Cleaver is not a spy working for Breland, but a follower of the Lord of Blades who wishes to procure the weapon for his master. The rest of the adventure includes a lengthy trek across the wastes of Xen'drik and a dungeon crawl through ancient giant ruins, with the heroes being pursued by both Emerald Claw soldiers (from Koren Blackforge) and warforged followers of the Lord of Blades (from Cleaver) at various times. Once the artifact is recovered, the heroes will have the choice of giving it to either Cleaver or Koren Blackforge, so regardless of who they give it to, the PCs have inadvertently helped an evil faction become more powerful. Whew, that was more than I intended to write originally. Anyway, if you have any comments or suggestions (especially regarding the identity and purpose of the magical artifact), they would be much appreciated.
#2 CraggleRock Feb 16, 2009 6:41:06	Interesting ideas. A few things to watch out for: any players with a fair amount of knowledge of the campaign setting may peg Cleaver as a LoB agent straight off from his name alone (I certainly did). Of course, they may not necessarily play their character as having this metagame knowledge, but it can still influence their decisions if they make the connection. Also there was an article (I think by Keith) that gave some cautionary advice on having too many of your NPCs being out to betray the players simply because they "want" to. It tends to foster a sense of distrust in the players, leaving them using Sense Motive/Insight on an NPC if they so much as claim the sky is blue. And if they gain access to spells/rituals to divine truth from falsehood... Advantages of having say, Koren, only betraying the PCs because Blood of Vol cultists have kidnapped his family and holding them to ransom: it means that Koren can more often avoid telling a lie by not telling the full truth ("I have no plan's to betray you..." (...however, the cultists holding my family do!)); it adds an extra hook to the adventure if your players uncover the truth (yes, giving Koren the artifact helps the Blood of Vol, but it may be the only way they can help get his family back); and it doesn't foster quite the sense of mistrust of everyone who offers them a job in the future. As for the artifact, there was some discussion on these forums somewhere of having relics relating to undead-style warforged, which could make an item of interest to both Blood of Vol and the Lord of Blades.
#3 ragingwookie Feb 16, 2009 13:57:38	Craggle thanks for the suggestions, especially regarding the motives for Koren and Cleaver. I was sort of worried myself that things were too simple with the betrayals. I will definitely add some extra reason for Koren to betray the PCs (like that his family is hostage) and the idea for the artifact sounds good too.