This blog is mainly meant for DMs, hopefully providing tips and tricks to help running a campaign and handling problems as well as providing plot ideas.
I am playing a heavily house ruled 3E campaign, but the entries should be applicable to other systems as well.
I am playing a heavily house ruled 3E campaign, but the entries should be applicable to other systems as well.
Adventure/Encounter Hooks IV
Posted 3rd October 2008 at 01:26 PM by Fenes
The Sword of Kings
Background:
In a distant realm, the "Sword of Kings", the magical blade of the royal line, carried by the crown prince, was stolen. Passing through many hands, including a few unscrupoulos travelling merchants, it arrived in a large toen/metropolis, where it is to be sold at an auction of magical, unique or luxury items.
The King of the realm has his men investigating the theft, and they traced it to a hapless merchant who had bought and re-sold it unknowingly, and is now facing execution for his part in this crime. His son, an adventurer, is desperately trying to recover the sword to gain a royal pardon for his father.
The crown prince himself is also looking for the blade, bent on personally recovering it to wash the stain on his honot (for losing it in the first place) away.
His half-sister, meanwhile, has sent a few trusted agents to swap the blade for a (deadly) cursed look-alike, to make it appear as if the blade judged the crown prince unworthy to become king so she can take his place as the heir.
Another group just wants the sword to blackmail the royal line - or to strike a blow against the monarchy, undermining the people's faith in their king.
All try their best to get the blade - through all means neccessary.
Hooks:
The adventurers could, if flush with treasure, buy the sword at the auction without knowing what it is - the auction house made up some story about a dragon's hoard - and then be later approached, maybe after a long chase, by the various people interested in it. That includes attempt to steal it, bribe them, replace it, rob it, or try to bully them into handing it over or promise them great treasures for giving it.
The adventurers could be the prince's bodyguard, hired to protect him on his long journey (and make a man out of the arrogant, yet inexperienced boy in the process).
The adventurers could be friends of the son of the merchant (or one of them could be the son himself) trying to recover the sword.
The adventurers could be hired by the half-sister, either knowingly, or as stooges with a sob-story.
The adventurers could be - if they oppose the royal line, maybe working for the "true king" or the "people" or the oligarchy of merchants that was before - trying to get the sword, and kill the prince in the process.
Locations:
Auction house with various defenses
The prince is a pauper
Background:
In a city state/capital, there was a bloody coup, and all the royals were killed. All but the youngest prince, which the court mage, before his death, managed to polymorph into a young boy, and implanted fake memories as well as protection from scrying, passing the detect-thoughts-enhanced search of the rebels.
Now the boy is struggling to survive on the city streets, trying to find his mother - the mother his fake memories invented - which he thinks is in a noble's mansion, held captive. He has dreams, strange dreams, during which he is a rich prince, but everyone has those dreams as boy, right?
The rebel leader, meanwhile, consorting with his fiendish ally, wants the last threat to hi reign disposed of.
To restore the boy to his true form and mind as a young man one needs a high-level dispel magic, or the prepared counter spell from the dead court mage - to be found either in his notes ransacked by the rebels and stored in the palace, or in his tower which was transplanted into the astral realm upon his death, or by talking with his spirit in the realm of the dead.
Hooks:
The adventurers can stumble upon the starving boy, or see him steal a bread, and getting caught, hear his story, and may decide to help finding his mother, which might tip them off once they see it's a fake memory (the enchantment is growing weaker over time as well).
The adventurers might be hired by a distant relative with visions to save the prince, or hired by the rebels to track down "the last spawn of the tyrant, which killed young people for his amusement, protected by the king" (or whatever other story makes them hunt a boy).
Locations:
"Nest": Abandoned building in the slums, run by a few older kids, and home to many of the street kids. Targetted by a ghoul, which has started hunting them.
Noble Mansion where the "Pauper" believes his mother is held prisoner. There is actually a young woman imprisoned there, either a mad relative hidden from public, or a thief caught by the guards, or the daughter of a merchant the noble wants to force into a marriage.
Royal Palace: Dungeons, ballrooms, bed chambers, hidden passages, towers, secret doors, lurking ghosts of the recently slain, and vengeful spirit dragging lone rebel guards to their deaths at midnight.
Background:
In a distant realm, the "Sword of Kings", the magical blade of the royal line, carried by the crown prince, was stolen. Passing through many hands, including a few unscrupoulos travelling merchants, it arrived in a large toen/metropolis, where it is to be sold at an auction of magical, unique or luxury items.
The King of the realm has his men investigating the theft, and they traced it to a hapless merchant who had bought and re-sold it unknowingly, and is now facing execution for his part in this crime. His son, an adventurer, is desperately trying to recover the sword to gain a royal pardon for his father.
The crown prince himself is also looking for the blade, bent on personally recovering it to wash the stain on his honot (for losing it in the first place) away.
His half-sister, meanwhile, has sent a few trusted agents to swap the blade for a (deadly) cursed look-alike, to make it appear as if the blade judged the crown prince unworthy to become king so she can take his place as the heir.
Another group just wants the sword to blackmail the royal line - or to strike a blow against the monarchy, undermining the people's faith in their king.
All try their best to get the blade - through all means neccessary.
Hooks:
The adventurers could, if flush with treasure, buy the sword at the auction without knowing what it is - the auction house made up some story about a dragon's hoard - and then be later approached, maybe after a long chase, by the various people interested in it. That includes attempt to steal it, bribe them, replace it, rob it, or try to bully them into handing it over or promise them great treasures for giving it.
The adventurers could be the prince's bodyguard, hired to protect him on his long journey (and make a man out of the arrogant, yet inexperienced boy in the process).
The adventurers could be friends of the son of the merchant (or one of them could be the son himself) trying to recover the sword.
The adventurers could be hired by the half-sister, either knowingly, or as stooges with a sob-story.
The adventurers could be - if they oppose the royal line, maybe working for the "true king" or the "people" or the oligarchy of merchants that was before - trying to get the sword, and kill the prince in the process.
Locations:
Auction house with various defenses
The prince is a pauper
Background:
In a city state/capital, there was a bloody coup, and all the royals were killed. All but the youngest prince, which the court mage, before his death, managed to polymorph into a young boy, and implanted fake memories as well as protection from scrying, passing the detect-thoughts-enhanced search of the rebels.
Now the boy is struggling to survive on the city streets, trying to find his mother - the mother his fake memories invented - which he thinks is in a noble's mansion, held captive. He has dreams, strange dreams, during which he is a rich prince, but everyone has those dreams as boy, right?
The rebel leader, meanwhile, consorting with his fiendish ally, wants the last threat to hi reign disposed of.
To restore the boy to his true form and mind as a young man one needs a high-level dispel magic, or the prepared counter spell from the dead court mage - to be found either in his notes ransacked by the rebels and stored in the palace, or in his tower which was transplanted into the astral realm upon his death, or by talking with his spirit in the realm of the dead.
Hooks:
The adventurers can stumble upon the starving boy, or see him steal a bread, and getting caught, hear his story, and may decide to help finding his mother, which might tip them off once they see it's a fake memory (the enchantment is growing weaker over time as well).
The adventurers might be hired by a distant relative with visions to save the prince, or hired by the rebels to track down "the last spawn of the tyrant, which killed young people for his amusement, protected by the king" (or whatever other story makes them hunt a boy).
Locations:
"Nest": Abandoned building in the slums, run by a few older kids, and home to many of the street kids. Targetted by a ghoul, which has started hunting them.
Noble Mansion where the "Pauper" believes his mother is held prisoner. There is actually a young woman imprisoned there, either a mad relative hidden from public, or a thief caught by the guards, or the daughter of a merchant the noble wants to force into a marriage.
Royal Palace: Dungeons, ballrooms, bed chambers, hidden passages, towers, secret doors, lurking ghosts of the recently slain, and vengeful spirit dragging lone rebel guards to their deaths at midnight.
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