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Iron DM 2012 -- R2 complete, Finals in Progress
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<blockquote data-quote="Lwaxy" data-source="post: 5944185" data-attributes="member: 53286"><p><em>Ingredients, not counted in word count:</em></p><p><em></em></p><p><em>Artist's Studio – where the Robe of Bones is</em></p><p><em>The Final Dragon – what Jahourmon D'Hal wants to become</em></p><p><em>Battered Manuscript – the Codex of Ascension</em></p><p><em>Suspended Clergyman – Hanar Windstone</em></p><p><em>Checks and Balances – the way D'Hal gets his payment in information</em></p><p><em>Robe of Bones – the artifact needed to complete the transformation</em></p><p></p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 18px"><strong>Master Piece</strong></span></p><p></p><p>For a party of 4-6 of level 4-7, in a modern/cyberpunk setting or any fantasy world</p><p></p><p></p><p>In a city in a mountain area, the PCs are contacted by a friend (or hiring contact) to help out Hanar Windstone, assistant preacher from a temple of a benevolent deity. Hanar is a conspiracy theorist and doomsayer, and he has allowed his suspicions and fears to influence his preachings. Thus, the temple has suspended him and placed him in financials, as he is good with numbers. Hanar thinks this is a conspiracy against him, probably because of another conspiracy or two he "was about to discover" regarding the temple and its former inhabitants. </p><p></p><p>Hanar is in charge of balances for services his temple renders to the community. He noticed a lot of checks come back bouncing. His fellow priest Jahourmon D'Hal rushes in and takes care of them, sometimes tearing the returned checks right out of his hand. One of those checks came back on a day where D'Hal had other duties, and Hanar worked it out himself, misplacing the bounced check instead of archiving it. D'Hal flipped hearing about it. Hanar saw him searching the office after work. He smells yet another conspiracy. He is now afraid for his life and needs the party to find out what is going on.</p><p></p><p>Given a chance, he'll go on about conspiracies and prophecy of doom the PCs can have heard about, and some to boost. Some of them are known as wrong, but Hanar makes them sound believable. He gives them directions to D'Hal's rooms and also tells them where the archived checks are supposed to be. </p><p></p><p>The PCs have no trouble moving around the temple, although the description they have is off and they should take a wrong turn, maybe get themselves in an embarrassing situation. D'Hal's room is, unlike other temple rooms, locked but easy to open for someone with equivalent skills. It is tidy, and aside from a shrine camouflaged as bookcase and a set of masterwork weapons fitting a martial artist in your campaign, there is nothing to find. Knowledge checks reveal the shrine as one of the Cult of the Final Dragon and the weapon decoration from a sect called the Dragon Wings. </p><p></p><p>The financial office is occupied. One of the priests brought his love interest for a romantic night. Any distraction making them think one of the superior priests are coming will make them leave in a hurry, but if they believe it is someone having no business here, they might raise alarm. Once they are gone, finding the checks doesn't take long, but it needs a skill check to notice the random letters and numbers on them. They are the same handwriting. </p><p></p><p>Taking the checks makes D'Hal is aware someone is after him. Copying works fine. The PCs can puzzle out the section and street of the city from the information, all that is missing is building number and floor. Telling Hanar this shocks him. He asks the PCs to check the street out for him and then rushes off somewhat panicked. </p><p></p><p>The street is has a barber, baker with coffee shop, artist's studio with a shop front and more campaign appropriate locations. Shop owners say the artist is weird, mumbling and not quite there. The artwork looks like it. He is making art from all sorts of trash donations other people want to get rid of. The studio is currently closed. </p><p></p><p>Next time they meet Hanar, they find him running from a group of thugs. Getting to him first, they can prevent the theft of a battered manuscript in a binder. If any of the thugs are captured, they will not answer and attempt suicide. If Hanar gets killed, the PCs have to backtrack to find the temple has a dark past as headquarters of the cult of the Final Dragon, run by the Dragon Wings. They also find Hanar unearthed old documents. </p><p></p><p>If just the manuscript is gone, Hanar has read parts and knows it is a copy of the Codex of Ascension, a description of how to to turn the cult's best killer, the Final Dragon Aspirant, into the creature of legend with the help of a Robe of Bones said to hold the essence of the last mountain dragon. In truth, this can be attempted by anyone, but in the past has never succeeded because the robe keeps being stolen by various groups of power. The cult members killed each other over it in the past, too. </p><p></p><p>Putting the pieces together, the PCs now could</p><p></p><p>- Research D'Hal and the temple at location, bringing them at odds with the temple leaders and reveal documents of power rituals, draconic artifacts of little importance and an old place of woship closed off somewhere. Some documents mention a large cave temple as a major ritual site. D'Hal has transfered here a few weeks ago supposedly from anoher temple, but that temple will have never heard from him if asked.</p><p>- Research in a public archive. This will give them the location of the dragon cave the cult uses for the most important rites. </p><p>- Follow D'Hal. He meets with various cult members, training them in the martial arts and basic magic, and he turns out to be a killer for hire picking up his orders from a donation box he is in charge of in the temple. If they are noticed, D'Hal sets the cult on them or, if alone, shake them off to get them later. When they find his trail, he is about to enter the artist's studio. </p><p>- If they find out about D'Hal's hitman status, they may attempt to catch who is dropping off his orders. This is almost impossible with so many people making donations after services, but if you want them to succeed, pick some powerful individual from your campaign with interest in making the Final Dragon its pawn. </p><p>- Watch the street they've been to before. D'Hal will eventually show up and enter the artist's studio. Before then, they will likely be approached by the locals about why they are hanging around without having any business unless they sit in the coffee shop.</p><p></p><p></p><p>D'Hal will get into the studio in daylight, posing as a customer. A fight breaks out in the studio and the artist calls for help. D'Hal is threatening to kill him if he does not tell him where the Robe of Bones is. Treat D'Hal as a monk/marial artist of 3 levels above the highest PC and some basic magic abilities fitting into your campaign. He is immune to any mind effects the PCs could throw. </p><p></p><p>D'Hal flees if he can't win or the fight attracts too much attention. The artist, Kadin, is thankful and attempts to gift them with artwork. Arcane magic users can detect various magic in the artworks, but the man has no idea this is so. He explains he is an artist of abundance, using what others throw away to make a statement. Almost anything he gets donated is trash, but there are some usable things hidden under the "art." </p><p></p><p>By now it should dawn on them that the Robe of Bones is part of an artwork. Kadin has no remembrance where it might be, as he forgets about what parts are in where to be able to "see the pure art." If his memory is helped a bit, he can remember who dropped the robe off – the same person giving orders to D'Hal. </p><p></p><p>It will take a bit of searching (some of the artwork with magic is dangerous) to find the robe as part of something called "Ogre in a Handbasket." How the robe looks is up to you, but it should be quite heavy, out of dragon bones and not easily removable. It detects as necromantic but not evil. Kadin will go mad and attack if they try to disassemble his art, but if they ask for this as a thank you for their help, he will gladly agree. Getting the heavy thing out of the shop and to safety is difficult. The cultists are watching already. </p><p></p><p>D'Hal's followers aren't anywhere close to his level – he has made sure this time no one would be there to assassinate him before he had a chance to transform. What he has not counted on is a power group at odds with who he has been killing for (to get the robe's location) showing up. This should result in a 3-way fight getting the attention of the authorities. </p><p></p><p>There is a chance the PCs escape with the artwork, in which case they will have a problem on their hands as everyone they encountered is after them. They may consider having one of theirs undergo the ritual if more research shows anyone could attempt it. </p><p></p><p>No matter who gets it in the end, the only way to complete the transformation is using the ancient energies in the old dragon cave. If the party is waiting there instead of going to the studio, mentioned power group shows up heavily armed and armored, with D'Hal their prisoner. They are sure they can control a dragon and want to use D'Hal as their pawn and talk openly about it. D'Hal is sure of himself, going on about he will destroy them once he has transformed. </p><p></p><p>The tunnels leading to the cave are trapped (magical, mechanical, technical, as fitting to your campaign), something D'Hal won't tell his captors. This will probably lead to an opportunity to attack as long as the group is distracted. Have most of the traps reset so the PCs can't just follow behind if they decide not to act. If the PCs are going in before anyone arrives, it is obvious someone set off traps. They are unable to enter the cave without a magical password unless the carry the robe.</p><p></p><p>Anyone can enter with the robe, which moves on its own to float in the center. Once in this state, the robe could only be removed with another complicated ritual. It now awaits the Final Dragon ceremony. </p><p></p><p>The party might choose to fight both sides of the conflict, or help either D'Hal or his adversaries. D'Hal will promise them power if they assist him, as most of his cultists ran, being outclassed by their enemies. He is honest with the offer. If the discussion or fight draws out too long, the robe picks its champion. This is D'Hal if present. </p><p></p><p>If D'Hal is no option, the robe may pick one of the party, likely the most accomplished in magic and/or fighting. As soon as the robe is on, the wearer is lifted to the middle of the cave again, and the reason for it being so heavy becomes clear. The bones expand with cracking noises, forming the skeleton of a dragon, with the wearer inside unchanged. Then the wearer changes, the body melting and expanding to fit over the dragon bones. There is a 20% chance this process fails, leaving the host dead but the robe intact. </p><p></p><p>The type and nature of the dragon depends on who dons the robe. The person transforming has the basic memory and the spirit of the original dragon as part of his mind. Jahourmon D'Hal would turn into an evil type. Hanar Windstone, if by any chance picked, would turn into a paranoid neutral one. The biggest secret of the robes, however, is that the wearer might, at any time, decide to take it off and turn back into what he or she was before – plus the memories and some extra abilities at the GM's discretion. It can also be put on again, and then without a failure chance. As long as one bearer stays bonded with it, no one else may use it.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lwaxy, post: 5944185, member: 53286"] [I]Ingredients, not counted in word count: Artist's Studio – where the Robe of Bones is The Final Dragon – what Jahourmon D'Hal wants to become Battered Manuscript – the Codex of Ascension Suspended Clergyman – Hanar Windstone Checks and Balances – the way D'Hal gets his payment in information Robe of Bones – the artifact needed to complete the transformation[/I] [SIZE=5][B]Master Piece[/B][/SIZE] For a party of 4-6 of level 4-7, in a modern/cyberpunk setting or any fantasy world In a city in a mountain area, the PCs are contacted by a friend (or hiring contact) to help out Hanar Windstone, assistant preacher from a temple of a benevolent deity. Hanar is a conspiracy theorist and doomsayer, and he has allowed his suspicions and fears to influence his preachings. Thus, the temple has suspended him and placed him in financials, as he is good with numbers. Hanar thinks this is a conspiracy against him, probably because of another conspiracy or two he "was about to discover" regarding the temple and its former inhabitants. Hanar is in charge of balances for services his temple renders to the community. He noticed a lot of checks come back bouncing. His fellow priest Jahourmon D'Hal rushes in and takes care of them, sometimes tearing the returned checks right out of his hand. One of those checks came back on a day where D'Hal had other duties, and Hanar worked it out himself, misplacing the bounced check instead of archiving it. D'Hal flipped hearing about it. Hanar saw him searching the office after work. He smells yet another conspiracy. He is now afraid for his life and needs the party to find out what is going on. Given a chance, he'll go on about conspiracies and prophecy of doom the PCs can have heard about, and some to boost. Some of them are known as wrong, but Hanar makes them sound believable. He gives them directions to D'Hal's rooms and also tells them where the archived checks are supposed to be. The PCs have no trouble moving around the temple, although the description they have is off and they should take a wrong turn, maybe get themselves in an embarrassing situation. D'Hal's room is, unlike other temple rooms, locked but easy to open for someone with equivalent skills. It is tidy, and aside from a shrine camouflaged as bookcase and a set of masterwork weapons fitting a martial artist in your campaign, there is nothing to find. Knowledge checks reveal the shrine as one of the Cult of the Final Dragon and the weapon decoration from a sect called the Dragon Wings. The financial office is occupied. One of the priests brought his love interest for a romantic night. Any distraction making them think one of the superior priests are coming will make them leave in a hurry, but if they believe it is someone having no business here, they might raise alarm. Once they are gone, finding the checks doesn't take long, but it needs a skill check to notice the random letters and numbers on them. They are the same handwriting. Taking the checks makes D'Hal is aware someone is after him. Copying works fine. The PCs can puzzle out the section and street of the city from the information, all that is missing is building number and floor. Telling Hanar this shocks him. He asks the PCs to check the street out for him and then rushes off somewhat panicked. The street is has a barber, baker with coffee shop, artist's studio with a shop front and more campaign appropriate locations. Shop owners say the artist is weird, mumbling and not quite there. The artwork looks like it. He is making art from all sorts of trash donations other people want to get rid of. The studio is currently closed. Next time they meet Hanar, they find him running from a group of thugs. Getting to him first, they can prevent the theft of a battered manuscript in a binder. If any of the thugs are captured, they will not answer and attempt suicide. If Hanar gets killed, the PCs have to backtrack to find the temple has a dark past as headquarters of the cult of the Final Dragon, run by the Dragon Wings. They also find Hanar unearthed old documents. If just the manuscript is gone, Hanar has read parts and knows it is a copy of the Codex of Ascension, a description of how to to turn the cult's best killer, the Final Dragon Aspirant, into the creature of legend with the help of a Robe of Bones said to hold the essence of the last mountain dragon. In truth, this can be attempted by anyone, but in the past has never succeeded because the robe keeps being stolen by various groups of power. The cult members killed each other over it in the past, too. Putting the pieces together, the PCs now could - Research D'Hal and the temple at location, bringing them at odds with the temple leaders and reveal documents of power rituals, draconic artifacts of little importance and an old place of woship closed off somewhere. Some documents mention a large cave temple as a major ritual site. D'Hal has transfered here a few weeks ago supposedly from anoher temple, but that temple will have never heard from him if asked. - Research in a public archive. This will give them the location of the dragon cave the cult uses for the most important rites. - Follow D'Hal. He meets with various cult members, training them in the martial arts and basic magic, and he turns out to be a killer for hire picking up his orders from a donation box he is in charge of in the temple. If they are noticed, D'Hal sets the cult on them or, if alone, shake them off to get them later. When they find his trail, he is about to enter the artist's studio. - If they find out about D'Hal's hitman status, they may attempt to catch who is dropping off his orders. This is almost impossible with so many people making donations after services, but if you want them to succeed, pick some powerful individual from your campaign with interest in making the Final Dragon its pawn. - Watch the street they've been to before. D'Hal will eventually show up and enter the artist's studio. Before then, they will likely be approached by the locals about why they are hanging around without having any business unless they sit in the coffee shop. D'Hal will get into the studio in daylight, posing as a customer. A fight breaks out in the studio and the artist calls for help. D'Hal is threatening to kill him if he does not tell him where the Robe of Bones is. Treat D'Hal as a monk/marial artist of 3 levels above the highest PC and some basic magic abilities fitting into your campaign. He is immune to any mind effects the PCs could throw. D'Hal flees if he can't win or the fight attracts too much attention. The artist, Kadin, is thankful and attempts to gift them with artwork. Arcane magic users can detect various magic in the artworks, but the man has no idea this is so. He explains he is an artist of abundance, using what others throw away to make a statement. Almost anything he gets donated is trash, but there are some usable things hidden under the "art." By now it should dawn on them that the Robe of Bones is part of an artwork. Kadin has no remembrance where it might be, as he forgets about what parts are in where to be able to "see the pure art." If his memory is helped a bit, he can remember who dropped the robe off – the same person giving orders to D'Hal. It will take a bit of searching (some of the artwork with magic is dangerous) to find the robe as part of something called "Ogre in a Handbasket." How the robe looks is up to you, but it should be quite heavy, out of dragon bones and not easily removable. It detects as necromantic but not evil. Kadin will go mad and attack if they try to disassemble his art, but if they ask for this as a thank you for their help, he will gladly agree. Getting the heavy thing out of the shop and to safety is difficult. The cultists are watching already. D'Hal's followers aren't anywhere close to his level – he has made sure this time no one would be there to assassinate him before he had a chance to transform. What he has not counted on is a power group at odds with who he has been killing for (to get the robe's location) showing up. This should result in a 3-way fight getting the attention of the authorities. There is a chance the PCs escape with the artwork, in which case they will have a problem on their hands as everyone they encountered is after them. They may consider having one of theirs undergo the ritual if more research shows anyone could attempt it. No matter who gets it in the end, the only way to complete the transformation is using the ancient energies in the old dragon cave. If the party is waiting there instead of going to the studio, mentioned power group shows up heavily armed and armored, with D'Hal their prisoner. They are sure they can control a dragon and want to use D'Hal as their pawn and talk openly about it. D'Hal is sure of himself, going on about he will destroy them once he has transformed. The tunnels leading to the cave are trapped (magical, mechanical, technical, as fitting to your campaign), something D'Hal won't tell his captors. This will probably lead to an opportunity to attack as long as the group is distracted. Have most of the traps reset so the PCs can't just follow behind if they decide not to act. If the PCs are going in before anyone arrives, it is obvious someone set off traps. They are unable to enter the cave without a magical password unless the carry the robe. Anyone can enter with the robe, which moves on its own to float in the center. Once in this state, the robe could only be removed with another complicated ritual. It now awaits the Final Dragon ceremony. The party might choose to fight both sides of the conflict, or help either D'Hal or his adversaries. D'Hal will promise them power if they assist him, as most of his cultists ran, being outclassed by their enemies. He is honest with the offer. If the discussion or fight draws out too long, the robe picks its champion. This is D'Hal if present. If D'Hal is no option, the robe may pick one of the party, likely the most accomplished in magic and/or fighting. As soon as the robe is on, the wearer is lifted to the middle of the cave again, and the reason for it being so heavy becomes clear. The bones expand with cracking noises, forming the skeleton of a dragon, with the wearer inside unchanged. Then the wearer changes, the body melting and expanding to fit over the dragon bones. There is a 20% chance this process fails, leaving the host dead but the robe intact. The type and nature of the dragon depends on who dons the robe. The person transforming has the basic memory and the spirit of the original dragon as part of his mind. Jahourmon D'Hal would turn into an evil type. Hanar Windstone, if by any chance picked, would turn into a paranoid neutral one. The biggest secret of the robes, however, is that the wearer might, at any time, decide to take it off and turn back into what he or she was before – plus the memories and some extra abilities at the GM's discretion. It can also be put on again, and then without a failure chance. As long as one bearer stays bonded with it, no one else may use it. [/QUOTE]
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