[Eberron] Retrieving the Macguffin from an ancient battleground

[RedWick]

Setting: Khorvaire. More specifically, a set of Dhakaani ruins and the site of an ancient battle. Current thoughts are to locate them in the Talentia Plains, but I could set it pretty much anywhere that would make sense.

Basically, the PCs are sent off to try and reclaim something or other from an ancient battleground (a la the title of this thread). The twist is that the only time that they're able to get to the object is during a conjunction of one of the planes in Eberron (can't remember which would be most appropriate off the top of my head and my campaign book is loaned out right now). However, when the conjunction occurs, a battle which happened ages ago at the site fades back into existence and rages all throughout the area. In my game, I have a backstory involving a demon which brought war against the Dhakaani about 1k years before the Xoriat invasion, and the battle involves those two sides fighting.

I have quite a bit of time before I need to run this scenario, so I'm just trying to brainstorm for how I might try approaching this situation. I like the idea of the different parts of the battlefield fading into and out of existence, with individual combats springing up in the middle of the PCs efforts to cross the field to get to a particular set of ruins to get at whatever they're getting at. The two sides of the battle would both be hostile to the PCs, so it would mostly be a survival issue initially, and then finding a place to hole up until the conjunction passes (assuming that the length of the conjunction works with that kind of approach). I'm thinking of using some kind of ethereal fading in and out mechanism to simulate how the different combatants appear then disappear, but I'm not sure if that's really how I want to do it.

I'm also considering, in a suitably pulp fashion, having some kind of competing real-world group going after the same object, so there'd be some measure of a time crunch.

I welcome any and all ideas, 'cause I've seen you folks come up with some stuff I'd *never* think of!

 

[Frostmarrow]

-How about the PCs need help from both camps to find the macguffin. They need first locate a hero of army A and save his life. Then they need to find monster of army B and persuade it to help. Together they might find the dungeon and open the locks and kill the boss monster.

In the end the PCs must face the dilemma of what to do with the hero (since he was supposed to die but now lives on).

I wouldn't bother with competition, I have never found that a good adventure thread - as player or DM.

If you need time crunch why don't you give the PCs an item that allows the PCs to fade into the battlefield (instead of the otherway around) and that the item has a limited number of uses and a limited number of rounds per use.

-Say that you click this wand and that gives you five minutes of game time in the battlefield dimension. In that time they need to find hero A. Once found maybe the time is up and the PCs fade back to Eberron. They must click it again and use another valuable charge to do so. -You get the idea.

 

[Frostmarrow]

They need to have a map of the battle (from a history book) where the geography is tied to spectacular events. The PCs need to position themselves just right so they don't fade/appear in front of a cavalry charge. Instead they might need to aim for a detachement of goblins in order to stay out of reach of the bloodthirsty minotaurs. Or they might have to chose to fade/appear close to a dragon to save time when saving hero A.

So the PCs can plan their action from the history-book map and are thrown right into the action of their choices by clicking the wand.

 

[RedWick]

They need to have a map of the battle (from a history book) where the geography is tied to spectacular events. The PCs need to position themselves just right so they don't fade/appear in front of a cavalry charge. Instead they might need to aim for a detachement of goblins in order to stay out of reach of the bloodthirsty minotaurs. Or they might have to chose to fade/appear close to a dragon to save time when saving hero A.

So the PCs can plan their action from the history-book map and are thrown right into the action of their choices by clicking the wand.

I like it! I was having trouble figuring out how to make the battle randomly fade in and out around the PCs. Giving them some measure of control over when and where they appear during the battle is much more proactive and just feels better overall.

Rather than using a straightforward map, I think I'll have the PCs have to search out oral accounts of the battle site from the locals (halfling nomads in the plains or other sources), and actually have to hire somebody to lead them to this haunted site.

 

[BlackMoria]

A thought,

The party must first find a relic or item of some noted worthy leader of the said battle.

During the conjunction, the battlefield springs into existance within a defined radius of the item. Moving with the item reveals and conceals the battlefield. You can get nice tension as the party moves into an area and reveals an area of heavy fighting. Of course, they can avoid it by backing away (unrevealing the area).... and there is no guarantee that retracing their steps will be safe - battlefield are dynamic and combatants move around. <evil grin>

 

[blargney the second]

Rather than using a straightforward map, I think I'll have the PCs have to search out oral accounts of the battle site from the locals (halfling nomads in the plains or other sources), and actually have to hire somebody to lead them to this haunted site.

Wow, I wonder how much the stories will have drifted over the thousands of years since the Dhakaani Empire! That would be really fun to figure out.

 

[RedWick]

I could play the story account up two ways (and I might just use both). One account simply talks about the location of an ancient battlefield which comes to life when the appropriate plane comes into conjunction (which kinda implies that there's something tangible for people to notice). The other account would actually talk about the what's there and why the place is important.

My thoughts about what the party is retrieving is some sort of legendary sword, so having the sword affect the existence of the battle raging around itself makes a lot of sense.

Many ideas here, getting the gears turning...

 

[Anti-Sean]

I like the timing of the demonic invasion; it's coincidental with the Aereni-established colony in modern day Valenar. I like the thought of the elves being conflated into demons as the tale is handed down through the ages, but that's a bit of a digression. It does, however, give you the Valenar to use as an option for the modern day group of competitors that you were thinking about.

I like the battlefield coming to life; were you planning to have spectral forms reenacting their ancient conflict, or were they made flesh once more? If the latter, how do you feel about the possibility that it's not so much ancient warriors brought back to life for a short amount of time, but everyone currently in the manifest zone being transported *back* in time for a while? That could raise a whole bunch of issues that you might want to deal with, but it sounds like fun as well.

In any event, I like the idea of having the MacGuffin inhabited by the demon from the ancient battle. Whoever retrieves it, be it the party or their possible competitors, has now given it a few new hosts to choose from!

 

[Black_Swan]

Have the other group that's searching for the artifact be from the time of the ancient battle. They're also a good aligned group and were sent to find this artifact to help them win the fight.

Then there's a showdown.

 

[Frostmarrow]

Have the other group that's searching for the artifact be from the time of the ancient battle. They're also a good aligned group and were sent to find this artifact to help them win the fight.

Then there's a showdown.

Cool! And the movements of the ancient time group is the only thing not on the map. (That is, if the players decides to make one from oral accounts.)