Aaargh!! Help me campaign, matey!

[Blue Sky]

I'm starting a Freeport campaign next week, and need some help. Here's what I got so far.

Adventures to use:
Maiden Voyage
Death in Freeport
Terror in Freeport
In the Belly of the Beast
Madness in Freeport
Black Sails Over Freeport

Cast of Characters:
Elf Monk with Major Gold Dragon bloodline. LG. His people are organized around families, each with a separate dragon bloodline. His family hasn't had a major bloodline for 2-3 thousand years, since the gold dragon patron died (probably at the hands of Yaresh, but haven't yet decided). He was hailed as the redemption of his family, the leaders of the elven nation, untill he left because of something they did (haven't yet decided).

Half-Orc Barbarian. NN. He was cast out of his tribe, with little or no explanation. I was thinking that his tribe had a prophecy about a half-orc leading them into ... something good ... and since then, they exile half-orcs as a testing ground, to help him find his way. Could be him, could be someone else.

Dwarven fighter, named Hustler. NE (This is a new player, so even though he chose evil as an alignment, I'm sure he'll end up following the other's lead.) Fights in traditional dwarven style: dwarven waraxe and shield. Didn't really have anything for him yet, perhaps amnesia after the captain of their ship fished him out of the water. Would explain his ... unique ... name.

The Captain. NPC. I'm going for someone like Jack Sparrow, flamboyant (sp) and eccentric.

And now I'm stuck. I don't really have anywhere to go with this yet, and the backgrounds haven't been given to the players yet, so if you have any other suggestions, shoot away. We'll be starting at first level. I'm shooting for a feel similar to Pirates of the Carribean, with lots of action.

These guys are going to be pirates, but nice ones, in a way. I'm thinking that Freeport sits on a major trading lane (IMC), and the Sea Lord has given his approval to raid any ship not paying their dues. To keep the PC's as the good guys, (and to highlight the swashbuckling style) I'm ruling that the merchants they raid aren't killed at 0 hp, just forced by their wounds to surrender. The "privateers" of Freeport will have a reputation of not killing, so I'm thinking this, with the high availability of healing, will mean most merchants will give up the loot, knowing they can always sail home alive.

My players can get pretty bloodthirsty, so I'm thinking there are pirates that either a) kill merchants, and burn the ships, because its fun, or b) will follow the "good" pirates, and raid them after a combat with merchants. These pirates will fight to the death (the penalty for murder on the high seas, according to the Sea Lord's law) rather than surrender, giving my players the opportunity to kill and maim. Of course, this won't be too common, as I think they'll have enough opportunity to slate their bloodthirst on the "bad guys" in the published adventures.

Wow, sorry about the lengthy rambling, now on to my questions.

1. Are there any simple rules, not in the core books, that I should check out? We're using a lot of rules from UA (defense bonus, bloodlines, players roll all the dice), so I am open to new rules, if they're dirt cheap.

2. Do you have any suggestions for pc backgrounds, or how to work them into the published adventures? Like I said above, the players haven't set up backgrounds yet, so if you have any ideas with what I've given you, speak up.

3. How can I change the published adventures, to better fit in the swashbuckling/piratey feel? (For example, placing the demon diamond from In the Belly of the Beast on one of the prison barges, instead of in the sewers.)

4. And finally, any other advice on how to run a campaign like this?

Thanks for all your help, mates.

 

[Morpheus]

It sounds like you have a decent start with the Freeport trilogy. You might want to check out Skull & Bones, also by Green Ronin. In particular, you might want to use the healing rules and the rules for "mooks". They add a very cinematic flavor that will make the setting seem that much more "Pirates of the Caribbean"-ish.

 

[Morrow]

You might also want to check out:

• Dead Man's Quest (Dungeon 107)
• Consequence of Vice (EN World Player's Journal 1)
• Tales of Freeport
• Hell in Freeport

You should take some time thinking about whether or not you want to include firearms in your campaign. I think ships firing massive broadsides into each other from short range really adds something stylistically to a swashbuckling game. However, some folks just don't go for guns in their fantasy, and adding them does require some thinking about all of the consequences. For firearm rules check out the Dungeon Master's Guide, Freeport: The City of Adventure, Iron Kingdoms, or SpirosBlaak (coming soon from Green Ronin). There are undoubtedly other options. I might go with the DMG just for simplicities sake, the others are more accurate in one way or another, but all require incorporating new rules into your campaign.



FREEPORT SPOILERS BELOW




You might find away to tie your half-orc to Drak Sockit and the Sons of Krom. Even if he's tied to them somehow, make sure that he faces enough prejudice in Freeport that the Sons of Krom will seem like a great idea when they show up in Black Sails. It will be an effective way to interest a character who might not otherwise care about Freeport politics into the Sea Lord succession fight.

Perhaps the temple of Harrimast or the temple of the God of the Sea has particular teachings about people who have been saved by drowning by the will of the gods. Is the person considered blessed? Is specific behavior expected of them to thank the gods? Are they expected to prophecy, or otherwise show the faithful the gods intentions?

Or perhaps the Dwarf's amnesia can be explained in a similar fashion to that of Lucius, from Death in Freeport. The prospect of someone else who has had a similar experience may create some immediacy to the investigation of Lucius' disappearance. And what if the Lucius' kidnappers find out about the dwarf? He might become their next victim.

The party is really going to be hurting without a cleric. Not only is there the healing problem, but Freeport adventures seem to feature undead quite a bit. In particular, Madness in Freeport has several encounters with undead that inflict ability damage.

As you are going through the modules be on the look out for ways to make the environment more swashbuckler friendly. Add chandeliers, ropes, and tapestries to swing on, include crates, tables, and other large objects to jump between, or behind. Opponents should make liberal use of tumbling, disarm, trip, and bull rush. Encourage your players to do the same. The Freeport modules are somewhat lacking in women (or men) to woo, and clever rivals to engage in battles of words. Add them wherever you can. Finally, the Death-Terror-Madness cycle calls for a lot of time in port. You'll have some time between Death and Terror, use it to get the characters aboard ship so they don't forget what its like to be a pirate.

That's all I've got for the moment. Can you tell I have ambitions to run a Freeport campaign? Be sure to post how it works out for you. We can never have too many Freeport story hours.

Morrow

 

[Blue Sky]

Morrow, that's a great idea about the dwarf's amnesia. Didn't even cross my mind.

Well, guys, keep it coming. I'm looking for all the help I can get.

 

[Calico_Jack73]

It sounds like you have a decent start with the Freeport trilogy. You might want to check out Skull & Bones, also by Green Ronin. In particular, you might want to use the healing rules and the rules for "mooks". They add a very cinematic flavor that will make the setting seem that much more "Pirates of the Caribbean"-ish.

Gotta second the reccomendation of Skull & Bones. I love how they create the Pirate feel especially with the incorporation of "Lives" for the PC's and the mechanic of Rolling the Bones.