All Your Lands Are Belong to Us

[the Jester]

So I've been thinking a lot about my upcoming 4e campaign launch, and a pretty cool idea occurred to me. What about a campaign that starts out with the pcs' home empire (the empire of the humans, eladrin, etc.- all the pc races) overrun and crushed by a horde of humanoids that was united for the purpose. (I think I'll be using an old organization, the Six Fingered Hand, which united six types of humanoids.)

I think this type of campaign would definitely promote adventure. The pcs wouldn't have a long-term sanctuary at first; there would be roaming bands of humanoids of various types that appeared in the countryside, slaving or killing at will, scattered resistance groups, old battlefields full of undead, scavengers and macguffins, etc. There wouldn't be any local authority- at least, not friendly authority.

On the other hand, it might get old always being in danger. And would a constant stream of humanoids get too boring? (I know that I can make them whatever I want in 4e, but still.)

Feedback? Ideas?

 

[malraux]

And would a constant stream of humanoids get too boring? (I know that I can make them whatever I want in 4e, but still.)

Feedback? Ideas?

Well, who's directing the humanoids? Is the goal of the invasion the direct capture of the lands, or is it a distraction by an Abyssal Lord to draw the eyes of the Gods away from his actual plan?

 

[Mathew_Freeman]

I like the sound of it, although you may want to drop in the odd 'safezone' so that they can relax a bit and not feel like attack is always around the corner.

Of course, you can always ruthlessly destroy the safezone just after they've left it.

 

[ExploderWizard]

I like the idea. The PC's have to begin thier careers by cleaning up thier own backyard. Instead of a "safe zone" I would use a nomadic camp of resistance fighters, always on the move avoiding and hiding from the humanoids. That way, as adventure locales change, the camp could move into "cleared territory". Clearing out a fortress full of filth and providing the camp a place to settle into will really provide a sense of achievement for the party. Once the PC's have carved out a new community for decent folk they can move on to paragon level concerns.

 

[cmrscorpio]

I had a similar (in spirit) idea for my 4e campaign.

PCs start out in a world at it's cultural and magical pinnacle. I'll give the PCs until level 3 to see what civilization is like at its height, then a zombie apocalypse occurs and no one is safe. After the PCs end the main threat of the undead (at about the close of Heroic tier play), then we will skip ahead a decade.

Civilization is being rebuilt, but now monstrous armies from far and wide descend on civilized lands. Since many of the monstous races have greater fecundity than humans, they are able to regroup and therefore begin conquering all the lands that were once human/elf/etc. PCs do their best to repel these hordes, but the "civilized" races are pretty much against the ropes. PCs can save parts their own small kingdom, but they can't be everywhere and most places fall into darkness. (end Paragon play)

Now, truely strange things start to happen, as magic starts to fail and other calamities beset the world. The PCs start getting premonitions of destruction on a global scale. They soon discover that the gods themselves are sending these visions. The BBEG who unleashed the zombie hordes has, in the afterlife, begun to bring about Ragnarok. Several gods are already dead, their power consumed by the BBEG. Now the PCs have to stop the BBEG before he can attain supreme power over all creation. (Epic play goal)

Next group of heroes are born into a Points of Light setting.

 

[mattdm]

I like the idea. The PC's have to begin thier careers by cleaning up thier own backyard. Instead of a "safe zone" I would use a nomadic camp of resistance fighters, always on the move avoiding and hiding from the humanoids. That way, as adventure locales change, the camp could move into "cleared territory". Clearing out a fortress full of filth and providing the camp a place to settle into will really provide a sense of achievement for the party. Once the PC's have carved out a new community for decent folk they can move on to paragon level concerns.

So, what makes the "cleared" area stay cleared? Are there, like, spawn points which, once disabled, no longer spit out bad guys?

(And I say that in a sarcastic sort of videogamey way, but with the right story could actually be made to work. Maybe the invasion was accomplished via a large one-time ritual which set up teleportation circles in all major settlements....)

 

[Cyberhawk]

Could be a fun campaign. Here's a few possible odds and ends you can use:

Perhaps they encounter one of the few surviving royals and/or leaders? They have to protect the young heir long enough for a larger resistance group to form around him or her. Provides a nice reason for the group to exist at first and when the players get tired of playing bodyguards you can drop the young heir off with some other resistance group.

Were there any bandit kingdoms before the fall? Perhaps a nearby forest had a Robin Hood type bandit operating out of them. It could be a valuable safe zone...if the PCs can convince the bandit to let them in and not turn them over.

If the humanoids are very barbaric you can point out to the fleeing PCs that some of the Wizardry colleges and such had very dangerous (but valuable) magical items. Perhaps a portal to the Abyss (or whatever it's called now) that needs certain safeguards to be maintained or something worse will come through. The humanoids are tough but don't have enough magical knowledge to prevent this..and if you warn them they may think you're just trying to do some sort of trick.

Well, that's a few ideas. Have fun!

 

[Tonguez]

I once started a campaign with the PCs home town being attacked. The bad guys first summoned a Storm of Vegeance to bombard the place and then had the inhuman hordes pour in.

The PCs who were level 5+ and all considered 'important persons in the community )including a captain of the guard and the local druid-priest' had to escape the attack and then gather in surviving refugees who were being hunted down by velociraptors.

From here the PCs were required to lead the refugees into the mountains passed an owlbears cave to an old mountain fortress which had however become the lair of kobolds. After recovering the fortress it had to be reinforced and the refugees trained as a military force so they could fight back. Of course when others heard about this recovered fortress they also flocked to it seeking shelter from the invaders.

The PCs eventually learnt that the invaders 'power' was provided by an idol and that if they managed to steal the enemy 'god' and take it back to their fortress they would turn the tide of the battle - and so they did

 

[Jürgen Hubert]

On the other hand, it might get old always being in danger. And would a constant stream of humanoids get too boring? (I know that I can make them whatever I want in 4e, but still.)

Here's an idea: Eventually, thanks to the heroic efforts of the PCs at a critical juncture, the Evil Empire collapses partially, and a civil war breaks out. The PCs manage to liberate and hold some territory of its own - but at the same point, several successor state of the Evil Empire (each controlled by a former henchmen of the Evil Overlord) stabilize, and they are looking to gain an advantage over each other. And the realm of the PCs - and the PCs themselves - might just constitute such an advantage.

Yes, this means that the PCs not only get to control their own mini-kingdom, but also play games of backstabbing intrigue with some more more powerful nations, each of which could potentially wipe their realm out, but risks weakening itself in the process. Will they ally themselves with one of the factions in hope of gaining more influence, or carefully try to stay neutral between the factions - while the Successor States try to provoke a war between the PCs and one of their rivals? What kinds of ideals are they willing to compromise to ensure the safety of their own people - are they willing to ignore the suffering of humans elsewhere to protect the humans in their own realm? Will the people in their own realm accept their leadership, or will some try to replace them - either because they want the power, or because they don't want to make any compromises with the enemy? And what do they hope for the future - is some sort of coexistence between humans or humanoids possible, or can this only be over once every last humanoid is either driven out of their region or killed?

This kind of approach allows for a lot more drama, shades of gray, and cloak-and-dagger intrigue than the more common, simplistic "Good vs. Evil" story - and in my opinion, it's a lot more fun. And if it gets boring eventually... well, just start an invasion by Things Man Was Not Meant To Know that threaten everyone, humans and humanoids alike, and see if they can rally former enemies behind them.

 

[Agamon]

I came up with a similar idea a few months ago, it should be a fun campaign:

The human empire has segregated itself from the rest of the world by magically surrounding 12 of it's cities with impenetrable magical barriers. Basic needs and resources are magically replenished and society is very structured and the cities are linked by portals (there's a lot more to it, but that's the setting as the players know it in a nutshell).

One day, the magic supporting the PC's home city and barrier disappears and a mostly goblinoid army invades. I'm letting them decide what they do from there.

Definitely a survivalist game where the points of light are dim, remote and not so much points as motes....