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The basic premise is that all the PC's come from very different backgrounds, but have one thing in common. They, like countless others before them, have been whisked away from their home worlds, and are now forced to play in the mysterious and deadly competition known only as The Games.
The PC's would start at level 1, and early on, they are teleported to some sort of temple that is inescapable, even by epic level characters. Since they're new, they are introduced to the rules of The Games. The top of the temple has a number of portals that each lead to a different "level" and each of the levels is a self-contained demi-plane with its own unique set of rules. For instance, one Level might be a vast jungle, requiring the players to find several totems scattered about and bring them to the correct shrines. Another might be a large battlefield, where the players are forced to fight large-scale battles with other players, and only when one side's battle-standard is captured are they allowed to leave.
The Levels are overseen by a group of mysterious beings known only as The Masters. They appear to be humanoid in form, and come in all shapes and sizes, but all wear masks and all have near deific power. Because of The Masters, the gods, archfey, devils, and Far Realm entities cannot enter the planes in which The Games take place. They're like Sigil's Lady of Pain in terms of power, but unlike the Lady of Pain, there are certain places where their powers weaken. In these places, they are able to be injured or even killed. Prominent players can gain favor from The Masters by performing special tasks for them, since The Masters are all vying for power in a system only they seem to know. If a player curries enough favor with The Masters, they may even recieve the offer to become a Master themselves.
Most players don't know what kind of prize The Games have to offer. Some theorize that becoming a Master is the prize, while others think that the prize is freedom from The Games and their twisted rules. Most experienced Players will tell you that the only prize is survival, that the only way out is death. Players may form alliances and friendships, but ultimately, all of them are competition, and in the right circumstances, anyone can be an enemy.
Into this strange and terrifying world, the PC's are forced, and they must band together if they hope to survive and unravel the mysteries of The Games and their Masters.
Each Level of The Games presents different challenges. Some are dungeons, others are a series of skill challenges. Others are arenas where Players are forced to fight each other, but each one is overseen by The Masters, each Master in charge of several levels. The goal of the PC's is to beat the challenges of The Masters and try to figure out just what is going on.
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The campaign goes through the three tiers like so:
Heroic:
The PC's are teleported to what I'll call "The Hub" for now, a general living area for Players to rest and recuperate in between levels. Here they are greeted by one of The Masters and the rules of The Games are explained to them. Here they get a taste of the competitive nature of The Games, since several more experienced Players try to help them, hurt them or trick them. As they explore The Levels and fulfill the challenges they start to find clues that something bigger is going on. As the PC's advance in level, The Masters begin to notice them as rising stars...
Paragon:
At this point, The Masters contact the PC's and inform them that in recognition of their skill and prowess, they are going to trust them with special tasks. The PC's continue to explore The Levels, but every so often one of The Masters contacts them and asks them to do something for him or her. This usually involves spying on or sabatoging the plans of other Masters. The PC's become the wild cards of The Masters, the centerpiece of their shadow war. As the PC's carry out these tasks, they learn more about the personalities, strengths and weaknesses of the various Masters, as well as clues that just as The Masters control The Levels, something even more powerful controls The Games. Things come to a head when one of The Masters asks the PC's to assassinate another Master. After the PC's carry out their mission, luring The Master into a trap that weakens them, and then using the opportunity to slay him/her/it, The Masters' conflict boils into open warfare, with The Masters rallying Players loyal to them and press-ganging Players who were either unaware of the conflict or who refused to get involved in it. The Games are thrown into chaos, and just as the PCs think it's all over, they recieve a mysterious summons...
Epic:
The PCs are brought before the true ruler of The Games, known only as The Grand Master. The Grand Master commends the PCs for figuring out the clues he/she/it has left for them, while at the same time scolding them for allowing The Masters to fight openly. He/She/It informs the PC's that they are now agents of The Grand Master, and will work his/her/its will within The Games. The Grand Master goes on to tell the PC's that order cannot be brought back to The Games until all The Masters stop fighting, but not that the Masters are all fighting each other openly, the only hope for peace is to kill them all. The PC's use what they've learned about The Levels and The Masters to lure them into traps like they did at the end of the Paragon segment. They have to be more careful now, since The Masters do not trust them, and are on the lookout for such traps. The war swings different ways as each Master falls, until finally the last one is killed. The PC's are then immediately teleported before The Grand Master, who reveals that the PC's have been decieved. It was in fact The Grand Master who contacted them and asked them to kill the first Master, because The Grand Master feared the other Masters, his/her/its servants, were becoming too powerful and might actually dare to defy him/her/it. By killing The Masters, the PC's have secured The Grand Master's undisputed dominance over The Games and all in them. He/She/It then offers each PC a choice. They can accept the role of Master and become a part of The Games, with the understanding that The Grand Master's word is law. They can be set free from The Games, and allowed to roam the multiverse at their leisure. They can become a sort of trainer at "The Hub" and teach the next crop of Players the rules of The Games. If the PC's want, they can also attack The Grand Master and try to slay him/her/it for his/her/its betrayals. If they kill The Grand Master, the demiplanes that contained The Games collapse, and the PC's and any other Players that survived the conflict are jettisoned into the Astral Sea, The Games over forever.
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There are a number of issues I have before starting this project. First, I've never DMed a campaign successfully, and I have no idea how to plan an adventure.
Secondly, I'm not sure how to stat up powerful beings like The Masters and The Grand Master, or railroading devices like the magic that prevents powerful characters from just Plane Shifting out of the dimension where The Games are.
Finally, these ideas are basically all I have. Can they be improved upon? Where do I go from here? How many PC's should I allow? What should the overall atmosphere and theme of this campaign be?
Any and all advice on this would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Plane shifting isn't a very common power in 4e. Even if your PCs do manage to get a hold of it, you could always say that it transports them into different sections of the game (i.e., a Fey shift may bring PCs into a game area specifically done up to look like the Feywild). As for "railroading," keep the Masters from essentially controlling the PCs. If the Master tells the PCs to kill a rival group of "players," let the PCs leave them alive. If the PCs are really up and coming stars, the Master may be willing to grudgingly allow the PCs to bend or break the goals it sets for each "game."
As for your ideas, they seem pretty solid. You may want to include finding background on the games- foreshadowing the presence of other Masters, the arguements that they are having with one another, and so on. I find that 5 PCs is generally best (that is the number that 4e is designed for).
Adventures can vary based on what you want. I'd need to know a bit more about the specific goal of a game to help you with an appropriate adventure.
That's part of my problem...I'm wondering if I'll have to have all the adventures ready before the start of the campaign.
Plane shifting isn't a very common power in 4e. Even if your PCs do manage to get a hold of it, you could always say that it transports them into different sections of the game (i.e., a Fey shift may bring PCs into a game area specifically done up to look like the Feywild). As for "railroading," keep the Masters from essentially controlling the PCs. If the Master tells the PCs to kill a rival group of "players," let the PCs leave them alive. If the PCs are really up and coming stars, the Master may be willing to grudgingly allow the PCs to bend or break the goals it sets for each "game."
I like that idea, and my initial intent for The Masters was for their tasks to be completely optional. If the PC's don't like The Master's offer, they are free to turn it down, and The Master essentially says "All right, be that way. I'll just ask someone else to do it. A pity. You turned down a valuable opportunity. Just don't expect me to be so kind to you in the future." That kind of thing.
As for your ideas, they seem pretty solid. You may want to include finding background on the games- foreshadowing the presence of other Masters, the arguements that they are having with one another, and so on. I find that 5 PCs is generally best (that is the number that 4e is designed for).
I was thinking 5 PCs was a good idea too.