Eberron Epic Tier

[hailstop]

I wish there was more help on running Epic Tier campaigns, but I suppose that's DMG3 material.

Still, our group is about to get into the Epic Tier and I'm trying to come up with a good arc.

The PC's, through their actions, have eliminated the possibility for Tiamat to be released, and that part of the arc is done. However, there are a few loose ends.

First, the warforged fighter keeps getting attacked. He's been called an abomination in the past by a dragon (who they killed). He's got a dragonmark you see, the first ever on a warforged. Zenobaal is the one who keeps sending people to kill him (but why doesn't he send his big muscle now?) So while he's a great BBEG for the end, it's hard to see how to go through 10 levels with him being the bad guy. (although admittedly I'm doubling XP)

Second, the fork of the prophecy has the Queen of Death (aka Lady Vol) rising now that one of the PCs chose to attach the Hand of Vecna. That player knows he's doomed, and I'd like to give him an opportunity to go out with a bang.

The problem here is that while Vol may be an epic threat (ie turning everyone in Sharn to zombies), I find it hard to have any of her minions being an epic threat...unlike say the Lords of Dust. Also, I haven't really had Vol or the Emerald Claw be major recurring villains yet...to start now seems a bit short. It's almost like it'd be better as a Paragon-to-Epic campaign.

Third is that I'd like to bring the Mourning into this, as one of the PC's new characters is from Cyre (an asassin).

Anyone else running an Epic Tier Eberron campaign?

 

[Novem5er]

I'm still running an early paragon campaign in Eberron, but I'm keeping my eye towards the epic tier.

I've been having a similar problem envisioning where my campaign will go. There are a lot of big evil guys to fight at the epic tier... but I can't figure out how to integrate all the evil minions.

Where on Eberron should there be level 24 monsters running around?! The Demon Wastes probably has some, and Xen'drik perhaps... but where can I find 10 levels worth of epic minions and henchmen?

There are only two solutions I can think of:

1. Take the adventures AWAY from Eberron. Leave the middle world behind and throw them into deep Khyber, the Abyss, the Astral Sea, etc. Find a way to connect these extraplanar locations to the gritty story of Eberron. An idea I'm kicking around involves Lady Vol severing the connection between Eberron and the Shadowfell (Dollurrh)... with the intent of trapping all souls on Eberron to form an army of spirits. The players might have to plunge the depths of the Shadowfell to stop her.

2. Destroy Eberron as we know it. You're group already prevented Tiamat from being freed... but what if another Demon Overlord was released? What if hordes of epic level monsters swarmed Thrane? What if the Lord of Blades released the energy of the Mourning and spread it across Khorvaire, corrupting and twisting everything in its path? Perhaps all the Gatekeeper seals could break and hordes of monsters from Xoriat pour across the globe?

I'm leaning towards a mixture of 1 and 2. I think I'm going to blow up Eberron (partially) and then send the players into the other planes to find ways to fix it.

 

[Tallifer]

Off the top of my head...

Perhaps you could limit the straight-forward combat encounters to two or three per level.

Instead, have more encounters with unusual mechanics to simulate the epic nature of the story: for example, the adventurers might have to command or at least advise armies: the experience points would come from the success of the army as a whole.

Skill challenges as the adventurers use diplomacy and espionage to forge an alliance of good and disrupt an alliance of evil.

Quest experience of course.

 

[Spatula]

A ran a 3e Eberron game that got to 20th level. For the latter levels I had them confront serious world threats: stopping the release of a tarrasque-like creature, repairing the Gatekeeper seals, defeating a massive aberration army massing in Khyber, stopping an attempt to free the fiend in the Silver Flame. For 4e epic, I think you have to focus more on stuff like taking the fight to the Lords of Dust in the Demon Wastes, re-awakened titans in Xen'drik, dealing with dragons in Argonessen, fighting the Daelkyr in Khyber, or moving off of Eberron onto the planes. In all of those places you can easily justify very powerful creatures for the PCs to fight. Ditto the Mournlands.

The worldly threats like Vol are more high paragon to my thinking (I think the 4e CG stats her up at 19th level). Although if Vol were to succeed at building some sort of eldritch machine to re-activate her mark and boost her power...

 

[Turtlejay]

I'm not sure how I feel about taking the adventurers out of the story by having them command an army. I do like the idea of them having greater influence, and the *opportunity* to do so, but at some point the players should get to bash some heads, too. Maybe an enemy plot teleports some assassins into the General's tent and the party has to defeat them to save the generals. Or something. But players acquire power, so the DM should let them excercise that power.

Personally, I'm all in favor of making Xendrik the focus. A lot of mystery there, and potential for world changing events (again).

Jay