Only idea I have would be them getting framed for something and needing to take refuge with one of these groups, thus owing them and having to do dirt work, but that doesn't sound quite right.
Ideas?
Oh, the party consists of a Human Artificier, a Half-Orc Fighter, an Avenger of The Traveller [Race Undecided], and a few others.
I'm sure there are better ideas out there but this is what i would do.
It looks like you have a diverse party shaping up already. Keep in mind that even though Daask's leaders are mainly monstrous, and the Boromar's chiefs are all halflings, any of the criminal gangs in Sharn could have cliques, crews, or other sub-units that are off-type. If the players want to run with a gang whose profile is very different from theirs, maybe they're an "expansion team" trying to win approval. Good opportunity for adventures, there.
Good luck!
One of the characters manifests an aberrant mark and immediately faces some persecution, but the ready ally of House Tarkanan is there to lend aid (perhaps the assailants were sent by Tarkanan to drive the PC into the House's arms -- perhaps the mark isn't even real!).
Another PC has an illicit habit which has been supplied by Clan Boromar, but now they've decided that their services (or perhaps their silence in regards to same) has the price of some not-so-legal assistance.
Another PC is informed that Daask has captured zir family and will introduce them to the unfriendly end of a cockatrice if zie doesn't do precisely as zie is told.
Yet another PC finds zirself embroiled in a maddening charade being enacted by the Tyrants; the character awakens in a strange place with a new face to news on the street that zie has been murdered. It appears that somebody went to great expense to see that the character was given a new life, complete with a disturbingly ubiquitous (yet impossibly evasive) cast of changeling acquaintances, but why?
Set them at cross-purposes and see how they sort it all out. Bonus points if they turn their respective problems against one another, but the only real win condition is survival. Of course, if you don't like the multi-gang element, you could always pick one of the above plots for everyone. I think that last one would be most entertaining to see befall an entire party.
Set them at cross-purposes and see how they sort it all out. Bonus points if they turn their respective problems against one another, but the only real win condition is survival. Of course, if you don't like the multi-gang element, you could always pick one of the above plots for everyone. I think that last one would be most entertaining to see befall an entire party.
There is a distinct danger though of the campaign comming crashing down if you purposely put players against each other. Make very sure your players would like such a setup, and more importantly, that they have the attitude to be able to deal with inter-PC treachery and backstabs without it becoming a conflict between players. In my experience, a bit of friction between PCs is great for RPing, but it disrupts the game if the conflicts become to big.
Mind you, blackmailing PCs into cooperation is a sure way to get them to actually oppose the blackmailers. In this case, the PCs might very well form an alliance to fight both Boromar and Daask ;)
Note that personally I had no problems at all to get the PCs involved in the gangs of Sharn when I run a Sharn campaign. I was not really planning to do so, but when my players created a half-orc street thug working for Boromar, a sleezy loanshark and a halfling of House Jorasco I only needed to think on how to get the warforged Morgraive university guard, Morgraive professor and ranger from the King's Forrest into at least temporary joining the Boromar and that was not hard ;)
There is a distinct danger though of the campaign comming crashing down if you purposely put players against each other. Make very sure your players would like such a setup, and more importantly, that they have the attitude to be able to deal with inter-PC treachery and backstabs without it becoming a conflict between players. In my experience, a bit of friction between PCs is great for RPing, but it disrupts the game if the conflicts become to big.
Oh, I merely meant setting their affiliated gangs at cross purposes, not the characters themselves. I think things would be much more entertaining if everyone was united together and found creative ways to succeed while cooperating or deceiving their superiors by some means. As might be inferred from the scenarios I suggested, I'm proceeding from the idea that the characters are not true devotees of their respective organizations; everyone's been press ganged into service in one way or another, so there's not much love lost between them and their respective superiors.
Basically, picture Lucky Number Slevin if Slevin were five people caught between five gangs instead of one guy caught between two. As a DM and as a player I'd prefer to establish a character background which generally puts the group's loyalty to one another beyond question (well... let's leave enough room for a little paranoia when things get dicey, but the base assumption is cooperation). That way you get the 'group plotting trickery together against outside threat' instead of 'each player character secretly plotting trickery against the others'. There's nothing inherently wrong with the latter playstyle, but it's much more insular and generally manifests as an entire session of silent note-passing with the odd shifty glance. Not as fun in my book.
In general, I think it can be difficult to have an adventuring group be too tied to a certain organization. Especially if they have varying backgrounds. In such cases, I think it's important to disconnect the individuals from their various ties so that the party eventually becomes their primary allegiance.
This is definitely the case in my group I DM. I mentioned the rogue above. There's also a Deneith Sentinel Marshal in the group. He's currently getting tied up in some enclave politics, and could easily be on the outs after Tasra and Lalia d'Deneith take over leadership of the Marshals (I develop this in my game). There's a Cannith artificer in the group who just found out she was excoriated and has no idea why (ala Lei from City of Towers- I steal wantonly
). She also has some reason to fear that her dragonmark is mysteriously changing into an aberrant mark. There's a shifter ranger who is a King's Shadow, and has been given the mission to find the Son of Khyber (ala Thorn- I continue to steal wantonly ). Eventually he's going to get his burn notice. And there are a few more examples. And all of this revolves around a poor dwarf who used to work for the Boromar Clan who developed an aberrant dragonmark and killed a prominent Cannith blacksmith by accident. He was being actively recruited by the Tarkanans when the group caught him while working for House Deneith. So see how I bring the group with varied backgrounds together by creating a situation which touches on each of them? Works for me. There are one or two PCs who are kind of along for the ride, but it includes the majority of the group in gang/organizational intrigue without having to actually join the gang.
Unless you tell everyone beforehand that their PC will be a member of this gang or that gang, it can be tough to plausibly keep them all together if you focus too much on one organization. But keeping them or getting them aloof yet still involved can create some cool situations.
I personally like the idea of rooting around in the affairs of Daask because of the connection to Droaam--and ultimately, perhaps, the opportunity for some pretty epic encounters with Droaam's militant warlords or even the Daughters of Sora Kell themselves.
I'm still trying to flesh out some ideas about Daask's ultimate purpose, though. Could their illicit transactions be a way to line Droaam's war chest? What are your thoughts?
I would also think Daask, before its presence became official, may have had something to do with the Glass Tower. That could be put in.
Since Daask ultimately works for Droaam and the Daughters, then whatever they're really up to is ultimately a goal of theirs. Although it isn't impossible that the criminal organization exists just to gather money for the Droaam army, it doesn't seem like enough.
Although Daask performs plenty of thuggery and petty crime, a more interesting element is their involvement in the drug trade. Plenty of money is made there too, but it also gives them a great deal of influence over their clients. Being the only source of dragon's blood isn't something to overlook. Dragon's Blood is expensive, meaning that only the wealthy are buying it. And its effects are mostly effective on those with magical abilities, most often the dragonmarked. The stuff is terribly addictive. Meaning that an increasing number of rich and powerful people are becoming enslaved to Daask and their masters. The Daughters are gaining a lot of leverage each time a key political player needs a fix.