ZEITGEIST 1001 things PCs are totally allowed to do in Zeitgeist campaign

hirou · May 12, 2014

AKA "What is NOT considered derailing". Add your examples in comments.
1. Spending over an hour of real time detailing Royal/Fleet square security details
2. Immediately posting guards (PC, not allied minions) near dutchess room. And eavesdropping on her.
3. Rolling two successive natural 20 on Arcana checks to overload wand with minor frost enchantment to cool frikkin RNS Coaltongue engine
4. Spending over an hour of real time discussing if they should just steal RNS Impossible and became pirates, or it's too OOC
5. Trying to clear underwater landfall not to get the bodies of constables underneath but FOR LOOT
6. Boosting group Stealth check into 20+ with rituals, bought beforehand, to virtually waltz around Axis island fort.
7. Recreating "Gents... Take a walk" scene from Pirates of the Caribbean, to approach lighthouse underwater
8. Destroying the sea gate control mechanism completely with Greataxe of Sundering (max damage vs objects), bought beforehand. A pack of firedust, rigged to the opening of the door, may or may not have helped
9. Abusing "Make whole" ritual mechanics to theory-craft an undetectable way of industrial sabotage. As a mean of passing time during fort siege.
10. Bypassing Gullie Dhu encounter completely with instant Diplomacy checks on the very first sight of him.
11. Almost finishing the Asrabey Varal encounter peacefully, failing self-imposed saving throw because of his arrogance and finishing him in one round by a barrage of natural 20 and daily powers.
12. Spending an hour of real time detailing the industrial espionage operations on the captured Axis island.
13. Spending a good amount of real time for off-session roleplay on personal investigation of Gale, including hired Vekeshi mystic kidnapper and an imitated act of terror on a steam boat. Before the start of Adventure 1.

Special mention: having fun in unpredicted ways. I love my group. And big thanks to the authors of this AP.

Elfshire · May 12, 2014

14. Rescuing both Kaja Stewart and Finona Duvall, putting enough guards around them to make assassination impossible, then coercing them to develop magic that disrupts planar incursions.

15. Taking the icon of Apet for safekeeping, thus rendering Sijhen's gambit unworkable.

RangerWickett · May 12, 2014

16. Refuse to work with Lya Jierre at all in the first adventure because of a grudge from the war, and so bring in a new PC warforged illusionist, thus inspiring the entire Pemberton Industries plot thread.

17. Use the aforementioned illusionist to impersonate the dead constable Letmas and ride the coattails of his reputation in a bid for public office -- namely, Mayor of the Nettles after Macbannin exits.

18. Convince Rock Rackus to sing about how terrible Lorcan Kell is. Arrange a 'Witchoil Relief Concert' to benefit the displaced people of the Nettles after the earthquake. In the middle of Rock's song about how Lorcan Kell cuts the eyes out of li'l chil'rens, have a PC sniper fire and miss barely, then have 'Mayor Letmas' jump in from of Rock and take a bullet for him. Thus turning the whole Nettles and most dockers against Lorcan Kell. (And allowing the warforged PC to get back to the business of solving conspiracies.)

19. Make a bargain with the Voice of Rot to bring the real Letmas back from the dead. Why? They found out that since he died so heroically saving Rock Rackus, they missed him, even though they'd barely actually met the real guy. One PC gains creepy rot powers and becomes an agent of the white serpent.

hirou · May 13, 2014

20. Planting a grenade in Dafton's pocket 'to give a plausible reason to arrest him' (how could I miss this one in the first post)

skotothalamos · May 13, 2014

21. NOT arrest Reed Macbannin.
22. Cause the destruction of RHC headquarters and several surrounding city blocks.
23. Convince Rock Rackus that the time is perfect for him to go on a concert tour -- a "Rock Tour," if you will -- on the Avery Coast Railroad this winter, making the perfect distraction from their clandestine activities.

Noodle · May 14, 2014

24. Be charming enough (and do enough RP) to convince Ottavia to teach a character her sign language
25. A female character seduced Boone back to her compartment, then used a 30+ Thievery check to steal his pistol and chuck it out to her companions waiting in the hall

Shilubi · May 16, 2014

26. Let the Coaltongue blow up. The Coaltongue II, aka The Everburning Torch, is under construction.
27. Dutiful squad leader arrest Gale and then the following night three squad members compete without knowing about the others to evade Gale from RHC HQ. The winner got caught and is currently under arrest/trial in Slate.
28. Character background: ex-Lya Jierre Bodyguard, in love with her. Might be a complicated relationship...
29. The whole squad has been suspended for a week because of suspicious activity (and that's before Nigel Price audit). Taught them things are easier with an RHC badge.

Dezhem · May 26, 2014

30. Allowing fire and explosions to solve many issues. The docks on Axis Island will never be the same again. Neither will the Waryeye's Alchemical shop. (The audit will be fun!)
31. Spending many a session roleplaying; sometimes not rolling dice for hours.
32. Flashing badges and pushing authority to get what they want. Believing wholeheartedly they're clever little constables and won't get discovered. Heh heh heh.
33. Pushing a burning cart full of explosives through a wall of fire off the docks before it explodes. Helped by a flying side kick from the team's muscle.
34. Being thoroughly creeped out in and out of character by judicious use of lighting, music and sound effects during the events of Cauldron Hill.
35. Using a real-life whiteboard to keep track of the investigations. They still get them thoroughly confused and make CSI style leaps of logic - to hilarious results.

hirou · May 26, 2014

(numeration is off in the previous post)
36. Attacking Lorcan Kell in the middle of the Theatre of Scoundrels scene.
37. Surviving the ensuing fight with 25 thugs (with more arriving) with clever usage of psionics, "resist 10 all" power of Bloodcut armor, one big chandelier (say hello to Axe of Sundering) and general disbelief of everyone present that cops are willing to go all-out with 5-to-1 (and rising) odds against them. And lots of good rolls.
38. Making plans of escape that invove riding Lorcan Kell through the air to the safety (Living Missile daily power 1 of psion, make a guess what it does) (this goes to my personal top 10)
39. Earning mortal enmity of Lorcan Kell by a) pushing him over balcony railing, making him hang on one hand, b) attacking his hand to drop his down, c) dropping a huge candelier over him and his thugs for good measure.

I believe Morgan Cippiano will have lots of fun when he learns of this and tracks the party. So looking forward to next session...

RangerWickett · May 27, 2014

hirou said:
(numeration is off in the previous post)
36. Attacking Lorcan Kell in the middle of the Theatre of Scoundrels scene.
37. Surviving the ensuing fight with 25 thugs (with more arriving) with clever usage of psionics, "resist 10 all" power of Bloodcut armor, one big chandelier (say hello to Axe of Sundering) and general disbelief of everyone present that cops are willing to go all-out with 5-to-1 (and rising) odds against them. And lots of good rolls.
38. Making plans of escape that invove riding Lorcan Kell through the air to the safety (Living Missile daily power 1 of psion, make a guess what it does) (this goes to my personal top 10)
39. Earning mortal enmity of Lorcan Kell by a) pushing him over balcony railing, making him hang on one hand, b) attacking his hand to drop his down, c) dropping a huge candelier over him and his thugs for good measure.

I believe Morgan Cippiano will have lots of fun when he learns of this and tracks the party. So looking forward to next session...

That's splendid! I mean, if they'd actually killed Kell that early, it'd muck a few things up later as far as Adventure Five, but nothing insurmountable. Good on them for trying.

I'd suggest adding a scene now where a PC is coming home from work and spots the door to a neighbor's house open a crack, then hears a commotion inside, since the Kell Guild has sent someone to murder the neighbor and keep an eye on the PC, so they can murder the PC when he sleeps. (I'm not a fan of 'punishing' the players, so having the Kell-Guild murder the neighbor without giving the PC a chance to respond is a bit un-fun.)