Rabbitbait
Grog-nerd
This is something that keeps coming up in my head, and I guess I blame WotC (in the nicest way) for putting out another story arc so soon. What would be a possible ending place for Princes assuming the PCs don't systematically pursue each Haunted Keep and Temple to their ultimate end? What about some plot points where the Cults are allied Air and Fire vs. Earth and Water and maybe some NPC Factions with the Harpers and Emerald Enclave and Gauntlet sweep in to help? I mean, why the hell wouldn't they do that given their knowledge of the danger to the immediate region? Even if it is like, 20-50 people? I'm not even talking about 15th+ level heroes. In my Realms campaign canon doesn't matter. There are not many high level people traipsing across the continent, and if they are they're involved with other stuff.
This actually makes a great deal of sense to me. There is no valid reason why 3 people in the world (our current PCs) would confront all of this stuff other than in the interest of being heroic D&D people to kick everything's ass.
My point is, if I want to cut this campaign off at a shorter level, what are some options? My players too would probably like to reach maybe 10th or 12th and then start over again with new characters in a new arc. I've known them very well for many years.
That's exactly the position I am in now, where the heroes have visited the Featherspire and the Temple of Howling Hatred, decided that those places are more than they can handle, and have decided that this is what armies are for. So now a delegation has gone to the King to request permission to take out the tower (as the Feathergale Knights are answerable to the King) and attacke the temple. Since none of the party are in the delegation now I am left with choosing:
1) The delegation doesn't make it to the king.
2) The delegation does make it, but become embroiled in politics
3) The delegation does make it, but the king is part of the conspiracy
4) The king doesn't believe the delegation and the delegation lose favour with the king (and so do the heroes by association)
5) The king gives them permission to act, so the Xandrar army is activated (I'm running this in Eberron)
6) The king takes this very seriously and sends in his own army.
I'm unsure which of these options (if any) I should take, and if an army goes in that certainly changes things a bit. But I don't want to put a stop on good player ideas.
However a complicating factor is the fact that Windharrow (from the Temple of Howling Hatred) is part of the delegation - and he is an excellent liar. So at the moment it's all very complicated and I'm not sure which way I want to go with it.