D&D 5E Adventure idea suggestions

[Gilladian]

I'm writing an adventure, and suffering badly from writer's block, so I'm here to solicit ideas. My PCs are 7th level, and they are currently in the underdark of my campaign world. Their purpose there is to track down a group of long-lost dwarves who fled into the underdark some 400 years earlier, and were lost.

The adventure I'm writing doesn't involve this, but is sort of a side-encounter as they travel, hunting for clues. They come across a group of Peck (whom I have altered to be somewhat less isolationist - they're driven by a racial debt to act as traders and runners-of-underdark markets- who have a home in a series of caves, and on an underground riverbank outside their home have set up a market where many of the nearby peoples come to trade.

The PCs will pass by once - experience the market, meet the Peck, may speak/trade or even discuss their goal with the Peck, and generally be on a neutral to friendly basis with them, but not really do anything too much, then pass on and go about their journey.

On their way BACK, a few days later, having either accomplished their mission or reached a dead-end, they pass back by the Peck market, and find a totally different scene. The market is disrupted, and the gate into the Peck town is being assaulted by a tribe of troglodytes. The trogs, if they could be communicated with, would tell the adventurers that the Peck have in their city, an artifact that belongs to the Trogs, and they WANT IT BACK!

My problem is that I know what was stolen from the Trogs (a magic weapon that they worshipped), and who stole it (some Urd), but I don't know why, I don't know why they promptly sold it to the Peck, and I'm not sure how the Trogs know that the Peck have it.

What could I do with the story to make it more interesting? Right now, I suspect my PCs will simply attack and kill the Trogs without ever discovering what's going on. Not that this is a BAD choice, but it is rather bland...

Anyone who wants to read more of what I've written so far, can go here: http://vishteercampaign.pbworks.com/w/page/103394919/Adventure with the Pech

 

[The Grassy Gnoll]

Have them return to the market to find it changed for a different reason - a raiding party of Peck have returned with this weapon and the town is out celebrating their success and seeing it being paraded about.

Thus the PCs know that object x was taken from troglodytes.

Have them see the Peck act in a way that makes them think they're less than the good guys. Relishing how the trogs were eviscerated; lots of racist language; perhaps a 'Silver Chair' (CS Lewis) moment where they describe a child trog begging for them to leave it behind and take him prisoner instead, please spare my mother...rough laughter as they describe how the kid was forced to watch his mum get gutted before they grabbed object x and took it home...

Enough to make them feel uncomfortable - then when the trogs attack, led in the vanguard by a child, well, their moral choice is there to deal with.

 

[Boneguard]

My problem is that I know what was stolen from the Trogs (a magic weapon that they worshipped), and who stole it (some Urd), but I don't know why, I don't know why they promptly sold it to the Peck, and I'm not sure how the Trogs know that the Peck have it.

Why The Urd Stole it/Sold it to a Pech: Someone (Drow, Duergar, Svirfneblin, Kuo-toa a rival Thog colony, etc.) hired the Urd to steal the sword (mayby via magic or discreetly) and told them to bring it to a Pech who "owed" him a favor.

How they discover it: After a Casting (Top of my head: Augury, Locate Item or Speak with Dead could work) the trog learn about the theft, during the pursuit, a Urd got captured (maybe in a failed ambush to slow down the Trog, or the trog got the drop on the Urd during nighttime) and the trog managed to make him talk, the Urd knew where they were heading (The Pech market) but not who the buyer was nor who hired them.

Aftermath: Under the Truce Flag, the Trog explain the situation to the PC, maybe hire them to find out who hired the Urd.

 

[Sword of Spirit]

My first thought was: "Use the tables in the DMG!"

There are some great random tables in the DMG for everything from villain motivations and methods to random room-by-room dungeons. Inspiration be there.

 

[Quickleaf]

What could I do with the story to make it more interesting? Right now, I suspect my PCs will simply attack and kill the Trogs without ever discovering what's going on. Not that this is a BAD choice, but it is rather bland...

Assuming by "Peck" you don't mean the derogatory term for the Nelwyn from the movie Willow, but actually http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/forgottenrealms/images/7/7d/LoDo1_Pech.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20140516112810.

Sounds like a great place to put more clues so your players DO discover there's more going on than "random troglodyte attack."

For example - foreshadow the strangeness of the troglodyte attack by first showing that the pech have great defensive strategies with choke points, deadfalls, and the ability to magically create walls of earth, so that over the years monsters have learned not to attack head on. This sort of thing could be explained in exposition by an NPC or discovered by a martial-minded PC making an ability check while appraising the pech settlement's defenses.