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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Kristivas" data-source="post: 6171010" data-attributes="member: 34179">Summary:  My best friend's kid wants to learn to play (most of the things listed here, he probably won't care much about/notice at first, and that's cool).  I'm going to DM over Skype/Roll20.  We're playing in 4e Forgotten Realms, with 3.5 rules.  This is a level 6+ game.  Just looking for general opinions.***My table formatting didn't hold up very well to being posted here (wrote it up as plain text).  I did the best I could with making it pretty here.***I thought of a few things for this game.  The storyline is basically, Myrkul finally wants to come out of the Crown of Horns and become a God again after being stuck on a deformed Yuan-ti after the Spellplague, and needs to use two of the PCs to do so.I wrote out 7 "background chunks" for the group to choose from.  Each had their own benefits and drawbacks.  An example is a Misplaced Princess.  She was a Princess of a fledgling Island kingdom that was destroyed pre-campaign.  She began with 3x the gold that the other characters had, with a huge drawback in dealing with Nobles and Royals (since she's basically Queen of an island that's only a charred heap beneath the sea).  She's also been blamed for the destruction of the Kingdom, and has a huge bounty on her head from the survivors.A prophecy will bring the characters together.  Only working together, can they avoid a terrible outcome for the world.  That, for me, beats "you're sitting in a tavern and an old man walks up to the table", but is still a little cliche'.  Meh.NPCsRight now, we have 4 PCs.  The rest will be played as NPCs, but I have a rule in which only 1 NPC can go with the party on missions.  This allows them to add a tag-along to supplement the group, without me having to play all the chars, all the time.  Why would the other NPCs just sit out, you ask?  Good question.  I came up with something for that.The NPCs will have "mission quests" that will parallel the main party's campaign quest-line.  If they succeed or not, will depend on a few things.NPC Mission Quest% for success - Source50% - Base+10% - Per number of NPCs over three (5 NPCs add +20%)+5% - Per 10,000g invested in the NPC's gearNPCs can fail, and there are costs that come with doing so.  (Some missions also effect the PCs, for example, mission 11 below.)NPC Failure Effectsd100 roll - Effect01-70 - Party makes a full retreat, failed mission71-85 - Party suffers a terrible loss, becomes shaken, -10% next NPC mission86-95 - A party member is taken captive, PCs must rescue96-99 - Party rallies through a failure, finding a way to overcome100 - Random party member killed in action, must be rezzedThe higher the level, the harder the NPC missions, and the more that needs to be invested in the group overall.Here's an example of one of the lower-end missions (the last mission of Act 1, of which there are 3 Acts overall.)05 - The Getaway (during The Heirophant)                     The NPCs must secure an escape route for the PCs to flee after                     the false Heirophant is dealt with.                     [Base Bonus: +10%, Comp. Bonus: +20% w/a Stealthy NPC.]They get a lot harder...11 - Bringing Reinforcements (during Holocaust Denied)                       The NPCs must bring Elven Rangers and Mages to (that                       f-ing place) in order to save lives.                       [Base Bonus: -15%, Comp. Bonus: +20% w/out Connor.](Connor's the Lawful Evil Psion who must remain alive until the end.  Despite his evil, he's extremely loyal to the party for protecting him.  That being said, he's a HUGE REAR END (damn censorship <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f61b.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":P" title="Stick out tongue    :P"  data-smilie="7"data-shortname=":P" />) and a racist toward surface Elves.  He's going to really piss off the Elves while the group is in Cormanthor, teehee.)NPC missions will be rolled by myself after all the variables are added.  The results will be played out in character.  "We would have brought the Elves, my friend, but Connor.. he.. he really angered the Rangers.  We were lucky to make it out alive."A point to all of this?Yes.  The NPCs will earn gold that can be used for the group overall (more on that later).  They also can earn Super Rewards based on success.  There are 13 NPC missions (and 13 main missions to the campaign), and by the time the last is completed, we will be very high level.  The first 3 rewards really aid the group, especially with the Skyblade (see below).NPC Mission Quest Rewards# of successes - Reward03 - Apparatus of Kwalish06 - Instant Fortress09 - Flying Carpet12 - Deck of Many Things13 - Ring of 3 Wishes"Are you going to make your party put up with crappy-attitude NPCs?"  That depends on them.  They can influence the NPCs with a secret Reputation score.  Here's how that works:Mod - Action+05 - Impressing with tactics/ability/skill+05 - Show of respect+10 - Taking their side+15 - Aiding them through action or charity+35 - Specific Gift*+50 - Completing their story quest*-10 - Show of disrespect-20 - Standing against them-50 - Refusing to aid their story quest*(Show of respect isn't just every single "good job, buddy!" and a show of disrespect isn't just a casual "you suck, man"-type.  Likewise, the "aiding them through action or charity" can only be gained a couple times.  * indicates it being a one-time option.  Each party member can individually effect the score.  For example, one party member gives Connor a psionic item and increases the score, while another pulls him aside to tell him he's a useless piece of crap.  Both are remembered.)Connor (LE Psion)Score - Result001-100 - Connor embraces Evil (NE), hatred over his past twisting him.101-200 - Connor remains conflicted, but does not switch sides at the end.201+ - Connor shifts toward fully embracing a better moral code, while softening his heart toward others.  He becomes LN.Volak (A Kobold Sorcerer.  Andrallicarastha is the Dragon he once served, before it became corrupted.)Score - Result001-100 - Volak leaves the party in Act 3 at this level, never seen again.101-200 - Volak does not allow Andrallicarastha to be killed without a fight.201+ - Volak delivers the death blow to Andrallicarastha himself.Galataea (the Princess I mentioned above)Score             Result001-100 - Taea accepts Duke Rhinvard's marriage proposal.101-200 - Taea decides to fight for her own Kingdom.201+ - Taea leaves her royal heritage behind forever.Base of OperationsThe Princess and Sky Captain (one of the other players previously unmentioned) come into the group with an Airship called The Skyblade.  Airships in Forgotten Realms are rarer than, say, Eberron.  The Skyblade was the pride of Esthin'car (the small Island Kingdom where the Princess and Captain are from).  The country had spent much of it's wealth creating the expensive airship, only for the Kingdom to be destroyed after it's first flight.  When the attack came, the Elder Prince stayed behind to lead the Esthin'cari forces while sending the Princess with the Skyblade to get help from allies.  The Captain of the Skyblade was killed in the attack, and with his dying breath, attuned the ship to an Ensign (who became the Sky Captain).  Both the Princess and the Sky Captain then watched as Esthin'car was decimated, making a daring escape before the ship could be consumed.The Sky Captain is the only person that can fly the ship to it's fullest ability (another can make it move with the controls, but after 2d10+4 days without the Sky Captain, it stops working and just stays where it is.)  The Princess owns the ship (it's really the only place in the world where she can claim to be royal), as her family is dead.  Without the Captain, the ship doesn't go, and without the Princess, the Captain is flying around in stolen property.I used Stormwrack (I think, anyway) to get a lot of these rules while making some up as I go along.  I'll go into adjusting the prices later, but suggestions would be helpful."How does it fly?"  The frame of the ship has had an epic, metamagic'd Levitate with Permanency (or whatever else I need to explain an airship) cast on it which keeps the ship aloft.  It can't really be duplicated, because all of the people who designed and made it are dead.  There is a control ring the Captain wears that allows him to pilot the ship.  Atop the ship, there's a tent-like canopy-shaped... balloon?  It holds an essence of Air that acts as the propulsion (the ship only flies forward, like a jet, not backwards and strafing).  The strength of the essence determines the ship's speed.  It must rest daily.  No traversing the world in a week.Almost everything can be upgraded.---The SkybladeThis is the ship the party will fly around in.  Home base, if you will.Defense UpgradesPlatingType of Plating - CostNone/Base  (50 hp/ 5 hardness)               -----Iron  (90 hp/10 hardness) - +30,000Mithril  (90 hp/15 hardness/+10 speed) - +75,000Adamantine (140 hp/20 hard/-10 speed) - +100,000Utility UpgradesMovementSpeed Upgrade                              CostMinor Essence of Air (70' Poor)        BaseLesser Essence of Air (80' Poor*) - +25,000Essence of Air (90' Poor*) - +50,000Greater Essence of Air (100' Poor*) - +75,000* = Replaces previous upgradeSpeed70 - 7 mph - 56 mp8h - 84 mp12h - 168 mp24h80 - 8 mph - 64 mp8h - 96 mp12h - 192 mp24h90 - 9 mph - 72 mp8h - 108 mp12h - 216 mp24h100 - 10 mph - 80 mp8h - 120 mp12h - 240 mp24hManeuver Upgrade - CostWonderbringer's Wheel n' Rudder Upgrade (+1) - Free w/Sidequest CompleteAir Thrust (+1) - 22,000ManeuverabilityMove - Good - Average - PoorMax Speed Change - 20ft - 10 ft - 5 ft.Turn - 45 deg/30 ft. - 45 deg/60 ft. - 15 deg/120 ft.Maximum Turn - 90 deg - 45 deg - 45 degMisc.Miscellaneous UpgradesUpgrade - CostWonderbringer's Mechanical Ladder Upgrade - Free w/Sidequest CompletionWonderbringer's Landing Gear - Free w/Sidequest CompletionLoading Bay Door - Free w/Sidequest CompletionExtra-Dimensional PC Quarters (20'x20') - BaseOffensive UpgradesWeaponsItem - Dmg. - Crit. - Range - # Crew - CostBallista - 3d8 - 19-20/x2 - 120 ft - 1 - 500---Bolt Cost: 1g eachBombard, Light - 3d10- x3 - 150 ft - 4 - 2000Bombard, Great - 6d10 - x3 - 200 ft - 8 - 2000Firebomb - 3d6 (f)     -                     -             -           50g eachFirespout                 6d6 (f)     -                  60 ft. line - 5 - 4000EnchantmentsEnchantment - CostFrame Levitation - BaseCaptain Bond - BaseDormant Invisibility (makes ship invis at rest*) - Free w/Sidequest CompletionShort Range Remote Piloting - Free w/Sidequest Completion(*for up to 10 hours, then remains inactive for 1d3 days to recharge)Factions, Side-Reps, and Gnomes, Oh My!I've created some small factions for the group to interact with.  These are side-quests.  The group can choose not even to visit them, if they like.  Here's an example of one such group and how this system works.The Devoted & Inspired Followers of the Glorious Gond WonderbringerLeader:  (name to come)Story:  The DIFotGGW are a small clan of Gnomish Inventors, who create Wonders in the name of Gond.  They meet the group when the Airship crashes near their land.  They offer to fix it, in exchange for aid against an enemy Gnoll Clan, the Ashpaws, who seek their destruction.Reputation:  1-1000Score - Reputation -          Benefit0000-0350 - Allied - 50% off all Clerical Services (within the Clan)0351-0700 - Favored - Two free ship upgrades0701-0999 - Renown - Two more ship upgrades1000+ - Hero - An Engineer of Gond will join the crew(the engineer's for the ship, and not really for adventuring)Adventure 1:  Securing the Supplies  (150 rep)Side Task 1:  Recover the Gyranonatar  (100 rep)Adventure 2:  Attempted Diplomacy  (250 rep)Adventure 3:  The Ashpaw Outpost  (250 rep)Side Task 2:  Rescue the Prisoners  (100 rep)Adventure 4:  The Ashpaw Den  (300 rep)Some side-factions will be easier to "level" than others.  The Gnome faction is pretty straightforward, while others?  Not so much.The Red Brotherhood - Bounty HuntersLeader:  Caldas the RedAgent:  Doln Madricar of the Crimson BladeStory:  Caldas was betrayed by Jodas and Criton, who stole from the Red Brotherhood vaults, killed most of the members, and fled.  The remainder of the Brotherhood seeks vengeance before the group retires for good.Reputation:  1-2001Score - Reputation - Benefit0-500 - Neutral - None501-1000 - Allied - +2000 gp each1001-1500 - Favored - +2 stat book, each member1501-2999 - Renown - A Red Brother NPC can join the group3000+ - Hero - The (remainder of) Red Brotherhood VaultTargetsRep - Name - Location+0200 - Gillam Dernhold - TBD+0200 - Crissa Dernhold - TBD+0200 - Michael Ganthos - TBD+0300 - Solithas Whisperleaf - Myth Drannor+0400 - Silent Thomas* - TBD+0700 - Jodas Le'Meirre* - Le'Meirre Keep+1000 - Criton the Mad* - Underdark beneath Raven's BluffThe guys with * after their names are pretty difficult to find/kill.  Silent Thomas is a sick f--- who uses magical darkness and a twisted maze of horrors to kill people.  Jodas has a stronghold full of soldiers which must be assaulted.  Criton's in the freakin' Underdark, so good luck finding him.Wanna just side-quest all the time and forget the main mission!?  No problem!  Sandbox away!  But....Act 1 is called "Dismantling the Cult".  There's a cult actively hunting the group.  I want the players to do what they want, but there's a sense of urgency and consequences with completely ignoring the main mission.  Here's one example.The PCs have to get the Cult off their back, else they're going to keep attacking.Cult Escalation If Ignored# Side Adventures - Escalation %1 - 5%2 - 15%3 - 35%4 - 55%5 - 75%6 - 100%Escalation1d100 roll - Tactic01-30 - Ambush the Party31-60 - Assault on the Ship61-90 - Kidnap Attempt  (Connor or Mirreck)91-99 - Assassination Attempt  (random PC, excluding Connor or Mirreck)100 - Suicide Bombing on the Ship  (only once)That's about it for now.  I don't want to post everything and make this post biblical in size.  I'd love some constructive criticisms.  I had to put my homebrew world on hold for this, but it's allowed me to put in a lot of thought and be able to try out different things.  This will be a High-Power campaign, but I think I've added sufficient money-sinks to keep the group from getting too powerful.  Of course, they can spend ALL the money on gear for themselves, but the NPC success rate will fall, and the ship will be in poor shape for Act 2 & 3 (when they'll really need it not to be).If you have questions, I'll be glad to answer them.</blockquote>

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