Campaign Plot - tell me what you think - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Campaign Plot - tell me what you think

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
fiskonian
Feb 23, 2011 23:21:44 Okay, so this is the general overarching campaign plot that I have come up with for the game I am trying to start up.

Heroic Teir - The first adventure is looking into what happened to a few local farmers who have gone missing in the past few days. After finding the villagers and stopping them from being sacrificed by the goblin tribe to a local dragon, they are thanked by the village elder and then introduced to the local lord. The players then do a mission for the lord and unfortunately it ends badly(I havent thought out any more adventure plots, but I'm working on it plus a few side quests and such). The lord betrays them and they are imprisoned in the Empirical Prison. A few years pass and as the PCs rot away in their cells, the guards and royal advisor come down and tell them of the assassination of the Emporer (I know, Oblivionesque) and how the lord who had them imprisoned was behind it. They release the PCs and return their gear.

Paragon - Not as much thought out, but I'd like it to be along the lines of the PCs investigating more of the assassination and finding out that the lord was an agent of Tiamat and had had the goblin tribe raise the dragon and feed it his subjects. The lord is an evil paladin with a dragon companion and is marshalling an army of chromatic dragons to overtake the Wyrm Isles(The continent my campaign takes place on). The PCs quest for a group of artifacts to help defeat the dragon army (Thinking Orbs of Dragonkind or maybe dragonslayer weapons).

Epic - Not sure what I want to happen at this point.
#2
steve629
Feb 27, 2011 14:08:12 I think this is a pretty god story, it's very much your standard fantasy fare, but nothing wrong with that.
#3
pruano
Feb 27, 2011 17:27:10 The Heroic Tier seems a bit too thin.

If the PCs are introduced to the lord and become his agents, whats the motive for the lord betrayal?

Who takes the throne, and why are the PCs released?
#4
theapokalypseshovel
Feb 28, 2011 3:08:48 Maybe the lord could put them up against a prideful metallic dragon that is standing in the way of his plans. The PCs might start figuring something is amiss, in which case the lord betrays them to save his own skin, having found them to be cavorting with the 'enemy'. If they follow it through, they upset the tenuous balance between the Empire and the metallic dragons, and the lord lets them take the fall (he denies involvement) while coming to the 'rescue' with his draconic army.
#5
trebor_rjf
Feb 28, 2011 8:51:06 they might be pretty bummed about being imprisoned for years for absolutely nothing but if you think its necesarry to your story then go ahead with it.
#6
yellowdingo
Mar 01, 2011 3:38:56 CAMPAIGN SECRET: The Lord of these lands is the Dragon. This whole 'sacrifice a few farmers to appease the dragon lord' scam has been going on for a while. Basically it keeps the other nasty critters from moving in - they wont go up against a dragon or be subserviant to him so they avoid the area.
The PC interference in the way things work in these parts has pissed the Dragon/Lord off, but they popped by for their reward so the Dragon saw an opportunity to employ them at a distance (as opposed to get rid of) before they notice that the local Human Lord in these parts is also the Local Dragon. He sends them to infiltrate the Prison (having them in place so they can meet their contact) - He has them arrested on baloney charges of attempting to murder him and sends them to prison in such a way that they will be happy to go.

The Arbiter of their case has them 'frozen in Carbonite'. Now three years pass, and their contact (the Dragon) finally shows up - and defrosts them for their real mission. They must infiltrate a group of Criminals who are going to escape from the Prison and join their band. Meanwhile they have somehow been blamed for the Assassination of the Emperor (while they spent three years in the freezer)...adding to their reputation.
Secret: The Dragon assumed the form of the PCs when he Assassinated the Emperor. The Dragon Did some really heroic stuff in the PCs place to get clost to the Emperor. So the PCs are screwed if they attempt to 'have a normal life' because Bounty hunters are still looking to claim the million gold piece reward for these 'murderous dogs'.

REQUIREMENTS: Whatever the Dragon is; he has a magic item that allows him to assume a Human Form of the local Lord.

#7
calm
Mar 01, 2011 19:12:20 I like the lord as dragon idea, or at very least, he is a vassal of the dragon. Also, have the characters perform a few jobs for this lord, so that they begin to like and trust him. But with each job after the first, things start to not add up. There are clues that the jobs the lord has the PCs doing aren't necessarily "good." Perhaps there's some collateral damage they start to hear about. Around the end of 2nd level, the characters discover a direct link to the lord and dragon and whatever bad thing is going on. At that point, throw them into an ambush encounter against a highly superior force. Let them fight, but have this force drop them within 2-3 rounds (knocking unconscious). As they are going down, let them realize that the ambushers are the lord's people (hidden symbols, robed warriors, etc.) and the last thing the last one standing sees is the lord approaching in the distance.
Then cut to them waking up in prison without items. The prison is sturdy and well-guarded, resisting their escape attempts. Don't even allow them to try stuff. Just tell them it is so. And time passes. But don't make it years; most folk would die in a true dungeon in that time. Make it 2-3 months max, just enough time for the lord/dragon's plans to come to fruition. Then have them get released by those who oppose the lord, who is making his play or has made his play for the empire. Rest of the tier is their attempts, probably with a key NPC in the court's help, ending with the overthrow and death/imprisonment of the lord.
In paragon tier, the lord/dragon escapes and flees to another plane. Or there are portents that he has been brought back to life by some other entity in another plane, and the party has to put a stop to his evil again. Whether that's true, or their search leads to a new enemy on another plain is up to you. They could face that lord/dragon again, but easily defeat it (hey, they are more powerful now), but realize the greater threat is the one who brought him back . . .
#8
AdmiralRanger
Mar 06, 2011 8:59:25
Then cut to them waking up in prison without items. The prison is sturdy and well-guarded, resisting their escape attempts. Don't even allow them to try stuff. Just tell them it is so. And time passes. But don't make it years; most folk would die in a true dungeon in that time. Make it 2-3 months max, just enough time for the lord/dragon's plans to come to fruition. Then have them get released by those who oppose the lord, who is making his play or has made his play for the empire. Rest of the tier is their attempts, probably with a key NPC in the court's help, ending with the overthrow and death/imprisonment of the lord.

Yea most people may die after a year in a dungeon but the pc's are the kind of people who probably could. Also what about the Lord's master (and Tiamet's assistant) confronting them at epic their. It is clithed but..

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 fiskonian Feb 23, 2011 23:21:44	Okay, so this is the general overarching campaign plot that I have come up with for the game I am trying to start up. Heroic Teir - The first adventure is looking into what happened to a few local farmers who have gone missing in the past few days. After finding the villagers and stopping them from being sacrificed by the goblin tribe to a local dragon, they are thanked by the village elder and then introduced to the local lord. The players then do a mission for the lord and unfortunately it ends badly(I havent thought out any more adventure plots, but I'm working on it plus a few side quests and such). The lord betrays them and they are imprisoned in the Empirical Prison. A few years pass and as the PCs rot away in their cells, the guards and royal advisor come down and tell them of the assassination of the Emporer (I know, Oblivionesque) and how the lord who had them imprisoned was behind it. They release the PCs and return their gear. Paragon - Not as much thought out, but I'd like it to be along the lines of the PCs investigating more of the assassination and finding out that the lord was an agent of Tiamat and had had the goblin tribe raise the dragon and feed it his subjects. The lord is an evil paladin with a dragon companion and is marshalling an army of chromatic dragons to overtake the Wyrm Isles(The continent my campaign takes place on). The PCs quest for a group of artifacts to help defeat the dragon army (Thinking Orbs of Dragonkind or maybe dragonslayer weapons). Epic - Not sure what I want to happen at this point.
#2 steve629 Feb 27, 2011 14:08:12	I think this is a pretty god story, it's very much your standard fantasy fare, but nothing wrong with that.
#3 pruano Feb 27, 2011 17:27:10	The Heroic Tier seems a bit too thin. If the PCs are introduced to the lord and become his agents, whats the motive for the lord betrayal? Who takes the throne, and why are the PCs released?
#4 theapokalypseshovel Feb 28, 2011 3:08:48	Maybe the lord could put them up against a prideful metallic dragon that is standing in the way of his plans. The PCs might start figuring something is amiss, in which case the lord betrays them to save his own skin, having found them to be cavorting with the 'enemy'. If they follow it through, they upset the tenuous balance between the Empire and the metallic dragons, and the lord lets them take the fall (he denies involvement) while coming to the 'rescue' with his draconic army.
#5 trebor_rjf Feb 28, 2011 8:51:06	they might be pretty bummed about being imprisoned for years for absolutely nothing but if you think its necesarry to your story then go ahead with it.
#6 yellowdingo Mar 01, 2011 3:38:56	CAMPAIGN SECRET: The Lord of these lands is the Dragon. This whole 'sacrifice a few farmers to appease the dragon lord' scam has been going on for a while. Basically it keeps the other nasty critters from moving in - they wont go up against a dragon or be subserviant to him so they avoid the area. The PC interference in the way things work in these parts has pissed the Dragon/Lord off, but they popped by for their reward so the Dragon saw an opportunity to employ them at a distance (as opposed to get rid of) before they notice that the local Human Lord in these parts is also the Local Dragon. He sends them to infiltrate the Prison (having them in place so they can meet their contact) - He has them arrested on baloney charges of attempting to murder him and sends them to prison in such a way that they will be happy to go. The Arbiter of their case has them 'frozen in Carbonite'. Now three years pass, and their contact (the Dragon) finally shows up - and defrosts them for their real mission. They must infiltrate a group of Criminals who are going to escape from the Prison and join their band. Meanwhile they have somehow been blamed for the Assassination of the Emperor (while they spent three years in the freezer)...adding to their reputation. Secret: The Dragon assumed the form of the PCs when he Assassinated the Emperor. The Dragon Did some really heroic stuff in the PCs place to get clost to the Emperor. So the PCs are screwed if they attempt to 'have a normal life' because Bounty hunters are still looking to claim the million gold piece reward for these 'murderous dogs'. REQUIREMENTS: Whatever the Dragon is; he has a magic item that allows him to assume a Human Form of the local Lord.
#7 calm Mar 01, 2011 19:12:20	I like the lord as dragon idea, or at very least, he is a vassal of the dragon. Also, have the characters perform a few jobs for this lord, so that they begin to like and trust him. But with each job after the first, things start to not add up. There are clues that the jobs the lord has the PCs doing aren't necessarily "good." Perhaps there's some collateral damage they start to hear about. Around the end of 2nd level, the characters discover a direct link to the lord and dragon and whatever bad thing is going on. At that point, throw them into an ambush encounter against a highly superior force. Let them fight, but have this force drop them within 2-3 rounds (knocking unconscious). As they are going down, let them realize that the ambushers are the lord's people (hidden symbols, robed warriors, etc.) and the last thing the last one standing sees is the lord approaching in the distance. Then cut to them waking up in prison without items. The prison is sturdy and well-guarded, resisting their escape attempts. Don't even allow them to try stuff. Just tell them it is so. And time passes. But don't make it years; most folk would die in a true dungeon in that time. Make it 2-3 months max, just enough time for the lord/dragon's plans to come to fruition. Then have them get released by those who oppose the lord, who is making his play or has made his play for the empire. Rest of the tier is their attempts, probably with a key NPC in the court's help, ending with the overthrow and death/imprisonment of the lord. In paragon tier, the lord/dragon escapes and flees to another plane. Or there are portents that he has been brought back to life by some other entity in another plane, and the party has to put a stop to his evil again. Whether that's true, or their search leads to a new enemy on another plain is up to you. They could face that lord/dragon again, but easily defeat it (hey, they are more powerful now), but realize the greater threat is the one who brought him back . . .
#8 AdmiralRanger Mar 06, 2011 8:59:25	Then cut to them waking up in prison without items. The prison is sturdy and well-guarded, resisting their escape attempts. Don't even allow them to try stuff. Just tell them it is so. And time passes. But don't make it years; most folk would die in a true dungeon in that time. Make it 2-3 months max, just enough time for the lord/dragon's plans to come to fruition. Then have them get released by those who oppose the lord, who is making his play or has made his play for the empire. Rest of the tier is their attempts, probably with a key NPC in the court's help, ending with the overthrow and death/imprisonment of the lord. Yea most people may die after a year in a dungeon but the pc's are the kind of people who probably could. Also what about the Lord's master (and Tiamet's assistant) confronting them at epic their. It is clithed but..