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<blockquote data-quote="RangerWickett" data-source="post: 8799024" data-attributes="member: 63"><p>I just reread the adventure, and my takeaway matches what that reviewer said: the adventure is too linear, and Pilus is underbaked as a villain. If his big living airship is going to be the focus of the penultimate adventure in the campaign saga, we need the fight against him to mean more to the party.</p><p></p><p>What is Pilus missing?</p><p></p><p>There's no <em>heart</em> to Pilus's arc as a villain. His background isn't resonant with the party, and isn't unique. Let's compare him to Leska and the Trillith.</p><p></p><p><strong>Leska</strong></p><p>You get snippets of her history across adventures:</p><p></p><p>She was loyal to the emperor until her home was imperiled by his conquest.</p><p></p><p>He sent her on an impossible mission to find the Heart, which she succeeded, but she lost everything during her quest.</p><p></p><p>She became driven to take power so she could never lose again, which means when she thinks she may lose, she tries to curse the world in spite.</p><p></p><p>In short, she's a tyrannical dictator with a bit of pathos.</p><p></p><p><strong>Trillith</strong></p><p>They're a bit more esoteric, but you've got the core hook of Trilla being exploited for her power, and then trapped with her own nightmares, and never really being in control of her own life. Her 'children' cause havoc in the world, and their goal is to break free and unmake everything in sort of a nihilist fugue.</p><p></p><p>Now that I'm writing this thread, ha, I want to overhaul the trillith element of the campaign too. I'd make it that Trilla remembers all the interactions the party has with the trillith on the surface, though she experiences them as dreams. If I could go back and rewrite things, I'd have each encounter with a trillith (Indomitability and Deception, Madness, Balance, Aggression, Agony, and all the ones in the Festival of Dreams) have some meaningful choice that would redound to how Trilla feels.</p><p></p><p>Then when you finally enter her dreamscape in adventure 10, there'd be a manifestation of her (which you see on the cover - an elf in a golden dress) that you could interact with -- at first with irrational dream logic, but gradually more coherent as you get closer to her body. That adventure would then go from just a vague 'rescue the princess' plot to 'save a troubled person from her own demons,' which I think would have more resonance.</p><p></p><p>But we're here to talk about Pilus.</p><p></p><p><strong>Pilus</strong></p><p>Pilus in the campaign as written is kinda thin. His motivation is basically just revenge against Ragesia, which then turns to megalomania. It's too close to Leska, just less compelling. He's also got a brother who's just sorta there.</p><p></p><p>I think a more interesting motivation is, like, patriotism. It's not fully fleshed out in the text, but Ostalin's background is that a few generations ago a warlord came across the sea and conquered the area, around the same time Coaltongue was conquering his empire. Ragesia and Ostalin clashed, and Ostalin clearly was losing, but Coaltongue felt satisfied with his conquest and decided to stop.</p><p></p><p>So I might build up Pilus as not simply wanting revenge, but thinking that his country and culture are superior. Make it so he's not seeking power for himself, but trying to help the Khagan Onamdammin (who's not the <em>best </em>leader, but he'll do) bring Ostalin morals and traditions to this foreign land. You could then give the party opportunities to talk to Pilus, learn his philosophy and ideology, and perhaps even see him as reasonable.</p><p></p><p>If I were to redo the adventure with the benefit of 15 years of hindsight, I'd first reassess what purpose it serves in the overall campaign. And that'll come in the next post.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="RangerWickett, post: 8799024, member: 63"] I just reread the adventure, and my takeaway matches what that reviewer said: the adventure is too linear, and Pilus is underbaked as a villain. If his big living airship is going to be the focus of the penultimate adventure in the campaign saga, we need the fight against him to mean more to the party. What is Pilus missing? There's no [I]heart[/I] to Pilus's arc as a villain. His background isn't resonant with the party, and isn't unique. Let's compare him to Leska and the Trillith. [B]Leska[/B] You get snippets of her history across adventures: She was loyal to the emperor until her home was imperiled by his conquest. He sent her on an impossible mission to find the Heart, which she succeeded, but she lost everything during her quest. She became driven to take power so she could never lose again, which means when she thinks she may lose, she tries to curse the world in spite. In short, she's a tyrannical dictator with a bit of pathos. [B]Trillith[/B] They're a bit more esoteric, but you've got the core hook of Trilla being exploited for her power, and then trapped with her own nightmares, and never really being in control of her own life. Her 'children' cause havoc in the world, and their goal is to break free and unmake everything in sort of a nihilist fugue. Now that I'm writing this thread, ha, I want to overhaul the trillith element of the campaign too. I'd make it that Trilla remembers all the interactions the party has with the trillith on the surface, though she experiences them as dreams. If I could go back and rewrite things, I'd have each encounter with a trillith (Indomitability and Deception, Madness, Balance, Aggression, Agony, and all the ones in the Festival of Dreams) have some meaningful choice that would redound to how Trilla feels. Then when you finally enter her dreamscape in adventure 10, there'd be a manifestation of her (which you see on the cover - an elf in a golden dress) that you could interact with -- at first with irrational dream logic, but gradually more coherent as you get closer to her body. That adventure would then go from just a vague 'rescue the princess' plot to 'save a troubled person from her own demons,' which I think would have more resonance. But we're here to talk about Pilus. [B]Pilus[/B] Pilus in the campaign as written is kinda thin. His motivation is basically just revenge against Ragesia, which then turns to megalomania. It's too close to Leska, just less compelling. He's also got a brother who's just sorta there. I think a more interesting motivation is, like, patriotism. It's not fully fleshed out in the text, but Ostalin's background is that a few generations ago a warlord came across the sea and conquered the area, around the same time Coaltongue was conquering his empire. Ragesia and Ostalin clashed, and Ostalin clearly was losing, but Coaltongue felt satisfied with his conquest and decided to stop. So I might build up Pilus as not simply wanting revenge, but thinking that his country and culture are superior. Make it so he's not seeking power for himself, but trying to help the Khagan Onamdammin (who's not the [I]best [/I]leader, but he'll do) bring Ostalin morals and traditions to this foreign land. You could then give the party opportunities to talk to Pilus, learn his philosophy and ideology, and perhaps even see him as reasonable. If I were to redo the adventure with the benefit of 15 years of hindsight, I'd first reassess what purpose it serves in the overall campaign. And that'll come in the next post. [/QUOTE]
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