I need Side Trek ideas to put adventure back on track, quick

Jaxom · Nov 5, 2002

An adventure with a slight derail.

The Problem:
In an adventure I'm currently running that came out before the book Manual of the Planes (MotP), the characters are to travel into the positive energy plane. The adventure didn't state anything about the plane not having a breathable environment which the MotP does, and the group agrees we should use the book. So the dilemma is I'm going to give them a magical item called bottle of air which will allow the group to breathe if they share it.

The Fix:
I need a quick side trek idea for them to obtain the magical item stated above.

Adventuring Area:
There are many mysterious woodlands and forests in the area they are currently adventuring. There are also a few small towns, demons, and half-dragons about, if that helps anyone.

ColonelHardisson · Nov 5, 2002

Perhaps they could come upon a Djinni or Air Elemental that has been trapped/enslaved/almost killed by a powerful half-dragon (or whatever), and in return for helping it gain its freedom, it rewards them with the bottle, into which it placed a bit of its essence.

s/LaSH · Nov 5, 2002

Now I have no idea if this would work into the adventure or not, but you could make the path to the Positive Energy plane lead through Elemental Air and have something there.

Or failing that, you could have the PCs find a dead or dying mage who was off exploring some quasi-elemental plane and needed an air bottle (say he/she was exploring Vacuum or some such, and something really nasty chased him back). Plane Shift allows for finding the mage in the middle of a field somewhere - it's as inaccurate as a... really inaccurate... thing. And if he's surrounded by something nasty that followed him (say things that look like wraiths or spectres but are actually elementals), well, that's a neat little mini-encounter with a twist.

Balgus · Nov 5, 2002

dang- one step too late. i was gonna say have them travel through the elemental plane of air and get it there.

edit:
or you can just have them get a warning from a mage that they can't travel there without a special air pocket. Have the mage create a spell that he can cast on the group.

Giving them a magic item means that you have to either have to deal with it later- or find a way to destroy it before the day is over.

I would just have a really rich collector buy it off them for 3x the cost. that way- you don't have to deal with having undrwater adv that aren't fun cause they can breath without air...

Mulkhoran · Nov 6, 2002

*deeeep breath*

Ok, this is a bit out there, but:

You could have them see a fight between a mage and a half-dragon at the side of the road. When they intervene or investigate, they find out that the half-dragon is the spurned freak-child of one of the local villages, and is trying to recover the bottle from the mage.

The half-dragon was given the bottle many years ago by his sea elven lover, who had migrated to a pond in the middle of the forest. She was the only creature that had ever shown any affection for the creature, and when he was cast out, she created the bottle for him so he could dwell with her on the bottom of the lake.

The mage is an adventurer who's stolen the bottle for his own purposes, perhaps to travel through the Positive Material Plane himself!

If the PCs help the half-dragon recover the bottle, he offers to let them use it out of gratitude. If they side with the mage, they have to negotiate a price or deal to get it from him. Or they could kill them both and just take it.

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