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<blockquote data-quote="Water Bob" data-source="post: 6321822" data-attributes="member: 92305"><p><strong>-- ADVENTURE IN ARGOS --</strong></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>I am starting a new game set in Argos. This is a short blurb I wrote (actually, sent it over text so that they can be thinking of the game while they're at work!) in order to orient the characters to the first scene that we will play. My last campaign centered around a clan of Cimmerians and their village. The PCs had a lot of support in the way of relatives, villagers, and clansmen warriors. This game, I want to change the opening direction. The PCs will start with nothing but what they have on their backs. And, I have no grand story in mind. I'm going to run this one old school. I'm just going to plop the players into the game world and see where they go. </p><p></p><p></p><p>You can see in the note I sent them below that I've shut off all support that any of the characters might have. Later, as the game progresses, I might add in NPCs from a character's past, but if that happens, it will happen organically. The players will follow their nose. I will try to accommodate their whims. Soon, I believe a story will emerge--just like it did in the old days of playing D&D.</p><p></p><p></p><p>Here's how I'm setting up the first game session. Each player has already created his character and background. Yuri of Raeve is one of the PCs. You can read about him up thread a bit. I'm going to start the game with the PCs, none of them knowing each other, a mile or two outside of town. They will be with a large group of refugees that have just left Raeve. The thinking is that there's safety in numbers.</p><p></p><p></p><p>I'll have a number of NPCs to play with--the other refugees. This first part will be a bit tricky, because I can't predict what the players will do. But, my first goal will be to get the PCs to encounter each other and somehow decide to travel together. Sometimes, the players will help you do this, and sometimes they won't. I've got some real roleplayers in this group, so I can definitely see them not joining the others unless they have a real reason.</p><p></p><p></p><p>Of course, I've got a couple of "real reasons" in my back pocket. I'll have all the PC camp close to each other--and walk close to each other in the refugee group. I've got a pack of desperate people who have all that they own on their backs. One thought I have is to put some NPC ruffians together and have them attack whichever PC has not found a reason to join the other PCs. The other PCs, hopefully, seeing the lone PC get his butt kicked, will try to help him. If not, the ruffians will beat the heck out of the lone PC and strip him of everything he's got. Pretty soon, the lone PC will have his reason to team up with somebody. He'll need food and weapons and somebody to protect his back when he sleeps. The NPCs that he encounters will either not have anything to do with him or will be so weak as to not be of any help (like an old farmer, his wife, mother, and kids). I'll just have to play all this by ear, but I think, eventually, the PCs will all find each other.</p><p></p><p></p><p>With that accomplished, I'm going to let the players "drive". I'm going to set up encounters for any direction that they go. If they stay with the refugees, then I've got a surprise for them--a neat encounter after a couple of days. They'll travel north, up through the Shaipur Ravine.</p><p></p><p></p><p>Raeze is in a small valley. To the south is the coast, which is not suitable for large ships. There are no ports in this area of Argos. They can take the coast road towards Messantia, if they wish. They'll have to travel over high hills (almost low mountains), and what they will run into this way, besides a few wandering monsters that I'm going to create, is King Milo's army. Milo does not want the plague in Messantia, and Messantia has no walls. Thus, he's got a buffer zone established between Messantia and Raeze along the coast road. Depending on the mood of the guards, refugees will be turned back or just simply slaughtered and burned (if the soldiers suspect the refugees are plague carriers).</p><p></p><p></p><p>If the PC move across the Plain of Bone and Marrow, I'm going to make this rough, not only with my random encounter chart, but with some undead. This plain is where King Milo's army engaged the remnant forces of Khalar Zym. The bodies still rot out of the plain, and now, some of them walk. Making it through the plain takes the PCs into the high hills mentioned ealier--and more adventure.</p><p></p><p></p><p>The other direction takes the PCs into the hills that separate Argos and Shem. I'm going to put cannibal hillman tribes in those hills. So, that will be a fun trip. And, on the Shem side of the border, Assuri mercenaries will be on patrol keeping the plague refugees from staggering into Shem.</p><p></p><p></p><p>The last viable route for the PCs is to go into the pass that leads to Khalar Zym's fortress, Khor Kalba. The fortress is still occupied by what's left of Zym's organization, but King Milo has left troops to guard the pass. No one gets in or out. It's been 18 months now, but Milo is hoping to starve them out.</p><p></p><p></p><p>I won't need many encounters--just enough to take us through the first game session. After we've played, I'll have an idea of where the PCs are going, and then I'll develop that direction. This way, the players have total freedom in whatever direction they go, and I won't spend a lot of time creating encounters and story that will go to waste.</p><p></p><p></p><p>I'm am setting the game about two years after the events you saw in the recent Conan movie. Khalar Zym was an Argossean warlord that ruled this part of the Kingdom. King Milo is glad to see him go, as Zym had gotten too powerful. What you see below is what I sent the players....</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Water Bob, post: 6321822, member: 92305"] [B]-- ADVENTURE IN ARGOS --[/B] I am starting a new game set in Argos. This is a short blurb I wrote (actually, sent it over text so that they can be thinking of the game while they're at work!) in order to orient the characters to the first scene that we will play. My last campaign centered around a clan of Cimmerians and their village. The PCs had a lot of support in the way of relatives, villagers, and clansmen warriors. This game, I want to change the opening direction. The PCs will start with nothing but what they have on their backs. And, I have no grand story in mind. I'm going to run this one old school. I'm just going to plop the players into the game world and see where they go. You can see in the note I sent them below that I've shut off all support that any of the characters might have. Later, as the game progresses, I might add in NPCs from a character's past, but if that happens, it will happen organically. The players will follow their nose. I will try to accommodate their whims. Soon, I believe a story will emerge--just like it did in the old days of playing D&D. Here's how I'm setting up the first game session. Each player has already created his character and background. Yuri of Raeve is one of the PCs. You can read about him up thread a bit. I'm going to start the game with the PCs, none of them knowing each other, a mile or two outside of town. They will be with a large group of refugees that have just left Raeve. The thinking is that there's safety in numbers. I'll have a number of NPCs to play with--the other refugees. This first part will be a bit tricky, because I can't predict what the players will do. But, my first goal will be to get the PCs to encounter each other and somehow decide to travel together. Sometimes, the players will help you do this, and sometimes they won't. I've got some real roleplayers in this group, so I can definitely see them not joining the others unless they have a real reason. Of course, I've got a couple of "real reasons" in my back pocket. I'll have all the PC camp close to each other--and walk close to each other in the refugee group. I've got a pack of desperate people who have all that they own on their backs. One thought I have is to put some NPC ruffians together and have them attack whichever PC has not found a reason to join the other PCs. The other PCs, hopefully, seeing the lone PC get his butt kicked, will try to help him. If not, the ruffians will beat the heck out of the lone PC and strip him of everything he's got. Pretty soon, the lone PC will have his reason to team up with somebody. He'll need food and weapons and somebody to protect his back when he sleeps. The NPCs that he encounters will either not have anything to do with him or will be so weak as to not be of any help (like an old farmer, his wife, mother, and kids). I'll just have to play all this by ear, but I think, eventually, the PCs will all find each other. With that accomplished, I'm going to let the players "drive". I'm going to set up encounters for any direction that they go. If they stay with the refugees, then I've got a surprise for them--a neat encounter after a couple of days. They'll travel north, up through the Shaipur Ravine. Raeze is in a small valley. To the south is the coast, which is not suitable for large ships. There are no ports in this area of Argos. They can take the coast road towards Messantia, if they wish. They'll have to travel over high hills (almost low mountains), and what they will run into this way, besides a few wandering monsters that I'm going to create, is King Milo's army. Milo does not want the plague in Messantia, and Messantia has no walls. Thus, he's got a buffer zone established between Messantia and Raeze along the coast road. Depending on the mood of the guards, refugees will be turned back or just simply slaughtered and burned (if the soldiers suspect the refugees are plague carriers). If the PC move across the Plain of Bone and Marrow, I'm going to make this rough, not only with my random encounter chart, but with some undead. This plain is where King Milo's army engaged the remnant forces of Khalar Zym. The bodies still rot out of the plain, and now, some of them walk. Making it through the plain takes the PCs into the high hills mentioned ealier--and more adventure. The other direction takes the PCs into the hills that separate Argos and Shem. I'm going to put cannibal hillman tribes in those hills. So, that will be a fun trip. And, on the Shem side of the border, Assuri mercenaries will be on patrol keeping the plague refugees from staggering into Shem. The last viable route for the PCs is to go into the pass that leads to Khalar Zym's fortress, Khor Kalba. The fortress is still occupied by what's left of Zym's organization, but King Milo has left troops to guard the pass. No one gets in or out. It's been 18 months now, but Milo is hoping to starve them out. I won't need many encounters--just enough to take us through the first game session. After we've played, I'll have an idea of where the PCs are going, and then I'll develop that direction. This way, the players have total freedom in whatever direction they go, and I won't spend a lot of time creating encounters and story that will go to waste. I'm am setting the game about two years after the events you saw in the recent Conan movie. Khalar Zym was an Argossean warlord that ruled this part of the Kingdom. King Milo is glad to see him go, as Zym had gotten too powerful. What you see below is what I sent the players.... [/QUOTE]
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