hawkeyefan
Legend
And if, when the scenario gets replayed, they double down on their previous methods - what then?
I mean, if I'm a player there - assuming my character has the same memories of this "dream" as do I the player - I already know what's going to work to get me freed and when the best time will be to do it; only this time I'm planning ahead so as to even more efficiently take down the guards.
Either that, or for those key bits they really do have to follow*, don't give them any escape hatches. Here, I think a better option would have been to capture them, have the shadowy figure give them the mission, then gas them all to sleep and have them awaken the next morning in a safe leafy glade ten miles out of town. From there, they're on their own and can approach the mission - or not - as they like.
* - having one of these lead-'em-by-the-nose bits happen infrequently is, IMO, fair game; but always err on the side of caution as it's something that can very easily be overdone.
Right. This game doesn't seem particularly concerned with agency, and the goal of the OP is how to fix this problem. It even went as far as suggesting time travel. So my answer wasn't concerned about agency.
I'd just back up to the point where things went haywire, and then start again. I'd offer another route to avoid the mess. I mean, this game has a heavy handed plot... the PCs are framed for murder, surrender into custody, can't escape, and then a mysterious stranger shows up and offers freedom if they do something for him. Oh, and they're magically bound to do it, of course! They agree... then they get caught escaping.
That's the problem right there. The only freedom the players have is to alert the guards to their escape. That's the one thing they're allowed to do. Why not have the mysterious stranger teleport them out, or reveal a hidden passage, or whatever? Nope! Let's see if the players can somehow make things worse for their characters!
So, to me, the issue is that misplaced freedom. Either let them make choices that actually matter and may improve their situation, or else don't let them make choices. But don't give them only enough choice to screw up. I don't see how that does any good.