tell me what you think - campaign idea

[Drakmar]

Hey there, I have been trying to come up with a new campaign idea for a while now, with some special prerequisites. Three actually. 1. I have to like it 2. My players have to like it, and 3. It has to lend itself to Heroic Gaming.

and well.. I have and idea that I am fleshing out that I think will fit. This idea is in it's infancy so... I would appreciate your idea's and thought's.

Basically.. about say.. 500/600? years ago there was a large Human Kingdom/Empire in the middle of a great plateau/valley, on three sides there are great mountains, and on the southern side, a great ocean. In the Mountains to the West, and some of the north there is a large Dwarven Empire in/under the Mountain Range. There were also so Elves in the Forests, Gnome and Halflings in the hills (if I bother with Gnomes and Halflings). In the Eastern Mountain Range there is a huge horde of Orcs.. splintered into to many tribes... o.. to the east of the Eastern Mountains.. I am thinking that there is say...desert...and the the West of the Western Mountains full of say, Wemic Tribes.. um.. not to sure.. but I would like to include say.. dense Jungle?

Ok.. to the current date.. about 500-600 years ago.. in the capital of the human empire.. towards the center of the valley.. a huge cataclysm rained down fire and dragons on the human kingdom, seeming hundreds of Dragons just appeared overnight, raining death and destruction on the Human Empire. Huge numbers of the Human survivors (and Elven) fled and begged aid from the Dwarven Empire. The Dwarves took them in.. and for the past 500-600 years, they have been living underground.

I have to figure out eactly what the Refugee's know about what happen, because a lot of their records have been lost.

Now.. what actually happened was.. a Race of effectively Half-Dragons came through a magic portal with their servant races. Basically to colonise. They sent through their shock troops first.. Dumbed down Dragons (or modified Wyverns) about 100 or so. And then they and their two servant races came through - Lizardmen..and Kobolds. They also brought with them some reptilian herd animals, and reptilian hunting "dogs".. the Half-Dragons breed slowly.. the Lizardmen breed a little quicker.. and the Kobolds breed the fastest.. I am not too sure exactly home many of each came through.. or how many more have been born since coming through.

There will be changes in all of the um... Human/Dwarf/Elf races culture... Also I am going to have Half-Dwarves..

O.. and I am going to use the Sovreign Stone magic system, and classes, and ALL prestige classes will be put in by me.

So.. what do you think? any ideas?

 

[Drakmar]

I have thought of what I am going to do with the elves...

Over time.. and in the newer generations.. all of the elves skin is getting darker. and the race as a whole is becoming more neutral in their outlook (rather than good)..Their skin is now more dusky.

This has been a slow process... and is linked to the fact that they are no longer seeing the Sun/the Moon (haven't decided which yet) - Basically.. I am saying that the longer the elves stay out of the sun (it takes generations for this to happen) the darker their skin/and their souls get.

The Elves main melee weapon of choice is the Flax (see TQF) and the missle weapon of choice for the younger generation is the composite short bow (longbows are too unwieldy in caves)

During their time underground they have developed spider silk products which they use for armour/clothes etc..

as you can see.. I am having them become slowly more like the "classical" drow.. because the children are not born under the sun and moon.

 

[Drakmar]

hmm.. interesting how many people actually go to the plots and places section.

o well.

lets see.. I envisage that there is three sub-races of the Dwarves. I am thinking a standard dwarven group similar to the Gold/Shield Dwarves from FR. Another group of more wild Dwarves, ones that are more prone to violence and but are still lawful - they will live closest to the orcs that live in the "Underworld" and have to fight a lot more. And the Deep Dwarves.. not evil dwarves, just not real friendly.

And, since the people could not take their horses with them underground, the Humans and the Elves have adopted the Dwarven steed - a Modified version of the Deep Crawler from TQD. I don't like the stubby tail, and I want them to have vestigal eyes left... just cause that looks better to me.

Also, I am thinking that the mountains have a kind of large bat-like creature.. that is related to tigers.. so it is a big flying hunting cat. Not currently domesticated.. but I think that with the right stuff they could be.

Plus the humans did not have plate before they came underground, now with the mix with the dwarves, they have developed the heavier armours.. In fact, due to the scarcity of leather, the metal armours are more common.

I am also thinking the the Elven City has got a large central cavern with a magical "sun-stone" and it is full on large trees'n stuff. The one thing keeping them from descending into darkness

Hmm.. I think that their might have been a couple of different sub-groups of humans 500 years ago.. but they have merged over time into on group culture.

 

[Munin]

a huge cataclysm rained down fire and dragons on the human kingdom

"Quick Martha, grab the youngins an' run fer the hills! It's rainin' draguns!!!"

This sounds like a good start because:
1) Kobolds rock!
2) Elves are schmucks, and killing elves is fun!

I would give the humans darkvision, since they have lived underground with Dwarves for the last 600 years.
The catch would be that they now have to adjust to the harsh daylight...remember gollum?

Maybe the Dwarves are oppressing their human guests, or the humans are starting to outnumber the dwarves, creating tension over limited resources.

You also need to decide how much knowledge was lost during the destruction of the kingdom, and scatter clues about the past around your campaign accordingly.

You could also pull a page from The Planet of the Apes and have some animalistic humans on the surface running around. Cavewomen are hot!

Munin

 

[Drakmar]

Yeah.. a mate of mine picked up on the raining dragons bit too.. problem with insurance agencies now days.. they cover for hail, not dragon dents.

What I am going to do is give the the humans a chance of having low-light vision, or darkvision. This is due to the cross-breeding with both the dwarves and the elves. Thing is though.. if it is with the younger generation of elves it will also be darkvision, as that is one of the changes the elves are undergoing.

I don't think that the Dwarves are oppressing the Humans, in the majority of areas. I think that I will have the elves becoming more reclusive.. infact some have moved away from all underground settlements.

I think that I might have them have lost almost all of the actual history, and part of what the party will be doing is finding out the true history of the humans.

I have also thought up the history of the Dracos Races. I think that I will have them as being a more violent segment of their home world, who fled before the majority of them were imprisioned.

The Half-Dragons, I am going to have them grow larger as they age... and maybe have them be able to increase the speed at which this happens by consuming the soul of a creature as powerful as themselves.. or lots of little ones. I want the society to be.. um.. nasty.

hmm.. throwback humans.. hmm... maybe.. I don't want the good races to have much contact with the Dracos people yet.. maybe.. dunno.. have to think on that.

 

[Drakmar]

hmm.. I just realised.. the Flax is a large weapon.. possibly not good for all situations.. I know.. the Flax is the traditional weapon of the surface.. a smaller weapon.. um.. maybe a Scimitar with a hand and a half hilt has become the weapon of choice underground. (sorta like a ninja-to or what ever they are called)

 

[Drakmar]

also.. there are books out there with Spidersilk equipment.. can anybody tell me what? because the Heavy Armour in the TQD made of spidersilk and metal is really only good for heavy war armour used by the elves. I probably need some lighter versions.

 

[Drakmar]

Ooo.. and I just had an idea.. I shall pinch something from the Sacred Dwarves in TQD.

The Mages of the Dwarves of the Standard Dwarves and the Deep Dwarves, both use an interesting way of recording their spells.. What they do, is shave sections of their heads/beards and replace that section with a metal braid. These metal braids (can be of various different metals) contain a secret "brail" langauge that also includes various gems (rubies, sapphires, diamonds, emeralds (earth), and um.. something else for void). The Dwarves jealously guard the secrets of their magics.. As such, they just say that it is a status symbol for their mages.

I will probably have to calculate a way for this to impact encumberance.. mwa ha ha ha haaa.

 

[Marcolino]

Human Factions

Just a thought on the impact this would have on the human culture. Considering that the gods are real, the attacks, the subsequent retreat underground, and the future of the human race could be viewed several ways:

1. The events occurred as the gods' punishment to the human race. The faction that adheres to this belief would focus on serving the dwarves as a measure of appreciation for "taking them in." They would also focus on serving the elves as a measure of apology for "getting them involved." This faction would work toward atonement and redemption of the human race.
2. The events occurred as a gift from the gods, driving them underground as part of humanity's growth. The faction that adheres to this belief would focus on advancing human influence in the underground world. This would be due to a "Manifest Destiny" for humanity. This faction would seek to expand through trade, diplomacy, warfare, or any other means at their disposal.
3. The events occurred at the whim of the gods. It was simply some outside, possibly random force that brought this calamity upon the races as a whole. This faction seeks to one day return to the surface and reclaim their ancestral home.
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   These are just some things that popped into my head. I'm sure you could mix, match, add or subtract as you see fit. The same can be said for the elves and dwarves. I don't see their culture changing as quickly, since their lives are longer and therefore they have a longer "cultural memory."

 

[Drakmar]

cool... I have been wondering what to do with regards to the impact on the human cultures Marcolino, and what you suggest makes a lot of sense... I think I will use all three ideas.. with a little customisation to make them fit perfectly, but otherwise.. sweet.

Now.. for the Rage Dwarves (stealing that from TQD.. well.. the name at least for the moment), they record their spells on puzzle strips that wrap around a staff.. and on rune stones. I think that all of the dwarven mages will also use rune stones for their magic. They use the runes stones for "common" magics... this is to draw attention away from their secret squirrel way of recording magics.

Now.. the elves.. hmm... I am thinking that the elves use a combination of.. enchanted wooden slats... and amulets with an elemental bound to it.

hmm.. how the humans use magic.. hmmm.. I think I might go with the classical spellbook.. but some of them have taken up using the rune stones.. and others have made amulets like the elves.