An Epiphany -- My new Fave thing about 4E

[inkmonkeys]

This one's going to get a bit ugly for the PCs, I'm afraid. Here's a rough synopsis per tier....

I'd be worried that

Spoiler

after 10 levels protecting these towns, to find them all destroyed the first time the PCs turn their backs is going to diminish the accomplishment of defending the towns. Do you have a way around that?

 

[Stormtalon]

True, true -- however, this is a group I've played with for around 8 years or so, and they're rather used to the severe plot twists I come up with. Considering in the past I've had them come across their own 10,000-year old dead bodies deep in the Underdark, staged a climactic battle to end a campaign on one of the floating cities of Netheril mere moments before Karsus' Folly, and smashed multiple worlds together to *start* a campaign, they'll handle it fine, I think.

Admittedly, they didn't exactly take TOO well to the finale of the fight on the Netherse city -- they killed Vlaakith before she had a chance to become a lich, and thus prevented the Githyanki invasion they'd just dealt with from ever happening -- which meant that their (3.5 ed) bard and halfling sickle-trip-ranger were.... alive again. Plus, I do give adequate forewarning when I trend towards the darker side of fantasy.

It's when I mess with any NPC sidekicks I give them that they tend to get ticked off.

Hmm, this just reminded me -- I need to adjust my sig a bit....

 

[Defender_X]

Yeah, messing with the NPCs is an issue that every group I've been in has had. Player's( me included) somehow take that personally. My high-school group took it bad in 2E and the guys I played Battletech with were just as bad when the NPCs got picked on.

 

[ShadowBite]

As a player I can understand why people would be frustrated when NPCs get messed with. But honestly what else is going to happen to them? Should they just kind of exist in the background? I guess if more DMs let good things happen to them and then on occasion sprung bad things on them, players might not take it so hard?

 

[Agamon]

Yup, I learned early in my DM career not to mess with NPCs. I have a friend that constantly reminds me of how I killed off his PCs girlfriend as a plot hook. That was 18 years ago...

 

[Hussar]

Stormtalon - you mean... you are creating a campaign without spending hours and hours and hours on setting wankery first? And NO ONE here is yelling at you for it. Wow, times really have changed. I thought the setting nazis around here insisted that THOU SHALT WORLD BUILD, before creating any campaign.

Must wait for it.

But, kudos to you. This is EXACTLY how a DM should be creating campaigns IMNSHO.

 

[Asmor]

Stormtalon - you mean... you are creating a campaign without spending hours and hours and hours on setting wankery first? And NO ONE here is yelling at you for it. Wow, times really have changed. I thought the setting nazis around here insisted that THOU SHALT WORLD BUILD, before creating any campaign.

Must wait for it.

But, kudos to you. This is EXACTLY how a DM should be creating campaigns IMNSHO.

Uhh... Which bizarro internet have you been reading? The de facto standard advice is 'start small, build out as you need to.'

 

[Nymrohd]

World building is not related to actual gaming in my experience. It is a separate hobby.

 

[Gregor]

My PCs are in the 12th-14th level range. They're currently working on a ritual to use a spark of deific energy to create a new world in the current world's image, because the current world is being devoured by an entity from the far realms.

I'm kind of at a loss for what to do that's more epic than that when they get to the actual epic tier...

Perhaps the price of the ritual is that the new world will spark new gods who are formed from the deepest, darkest parts of the souls of the characters. The PCs must now journey to the new world and "face their divine fears" in order to bridge the gap between the old and new worlds so that the gods of the old world can come to the new one?

Just a quick idea, but the players may dig fighting fledgling gods that represent their deepest fears. Hell, you could even ask them what their greatest fears are and then make them come true ... god-style.

 

[Hussar]

Uhh... Which bizarro internet have you been reading? The de facto standard advice is 'start small, build out as you need to.'

Really? Every time I've stated pretty much exactly that, that you should focus on your campaign and not building your world, I've been told in no uncertain terms, on these forums, repeatedly, that I am absolutely wrong.

That without world building, your campaign will automatically be flat, nothing but meaningless dungeon crawls and completely lacking in any sort of depth or consistency.

THAT'S the bizarro internet I've been reading.