Help fleshing out plague plot idea

[Abyss]

I am working with an idea for a FRCS game im planning to run. I want to start the players out in a largly untamed area of FR so I chose the north. The thing is, I also want to provide them with a decent town/homebase that can provide some services probaly a bit beyond those available in a wilderness town largly made up of trappers and farmers. To make things even more complicated, I want to include a small order of knights (so I can work in the cavalier prestige class for one of my players and some later story lines I have) in this town, acting as guardians/goverment. Now here are my problems

1.Why was this town founded to begin with?
2.What is an order of knights doing out in the middle of no where watching over some tiny wilderness town?

I could go the "We were sent by king so and so to claim this land in his name" route, but I actually want the knights to be independent of any elstablished bodies of power in FR. So heres what I thought up.

The populace of this wilderness town were once citizens of a much larger city from some distant land. Do to a terrible plague that was ravaging their homeland, they were forced to flee the stricken lands, the cities order of knights/clerics rounded up survivors and set off in search of safer lands. Thinking the best place to escape a plague would be an unpopulated area the knights headed north and eventualy settled the ppl there. This would allow for services to be provided beyond those of the average small town (the blacksmith was head of a large smith in his old city before coming here).

Ok so from there I thought I could plant some plot seeds by making the populace beleive the plague that drove them from their lands had been a natural occurance, but later it is discovered that it was caused intentionaly.

So basicly what I need is a disease that would cover the "plague" angle, some ideas for who these knights are (maby followers of ilmater?), and maby a few thoughts on who might cause a plague. I was thinking of an evil cleric/cult. Any ideas on which god might be most likly to encourage the spread of disease?

Ok so to some it up:

What disease would fit this story line? (one with supernatural origins would greatly help the "intentionaly started" plot seed).

Who are these knights that lead the populace?

Who might have started this plague?

Any thoughts adressing my specific requests, or just general comments on my idea would be greatly appreciated.

-Abyss

 

[jollyninja]

isn't talona the goddes of disease, don't have the book handy but i think that would be her cup of tea. cyric is murder so he would be another option. a misguided offshoot of kelevmor might work. or if it's an incident from before the time of troubles, bhaal would also be an option. this of course would make vengance impossible.

the knights could be warriors of helm (guardians of this town, the only way to guard these people was to move them) or illmater (not a real "manly warrior type" god but it could work). even tempus might work.

you could allways involve time travel as a source for the town's inhabitants, what if they were from netheril originally and the town has been there for a couple of generations so that might not be common knowledge. this could put them at odds with the shades and the phar...... (can't remember how to spell it but they are in the annaroch section of the frcs) plus, this would ensure that the knights have fierce loyalty to the town which might have been founded by some immensley powerful wizard, there would be some great craftsman and magic would not be hard to come by, clerics however would probably have problems with the populace.

if you're interested in netheril i think the boxed set is a free download at WotC.

 

[Utrecht]

Another angle to consider that most likely those individuals who could afford to move in this situation were the upper and middle class - groups with money - thus they ended up hireing a mercenary group to protect them.

These mercenaries where subjected some type of ritual that so long as the troupe is paid, they are magically bound to defend them. Thus there is no need for a King - the group could then be nominally independent.

Further, this type of mass migration would have some type of impact almost mythic proportions tied to it - Think the Telling at the end of Mad Max - Beyond Thunderdome or the Diaspora - that would affect everyone that underwent it - for many generations.

 

[LostSoul]

Here's a different take on things:

The plague was released on the people by a crazed, charismatic priest of a strange god. He gathered up the people that were still alive and left for the wilderness. Once they set up the town, he created his own group of "knights" to protect the town and uphold the virtues of honor and glory (or whatever).

After all the years have passed, the "knights" are a force for good and the people don't remember the true motives of the leader from so long ago.

***

It might be interesting to have the "knights" weeded down so that only one or two remain. They tell one of the PCs that he is going to restore them to thier former glory! Of course, thier "former glory" was when they were a totalitarian group of marauding disease-god worshippers.

***

Another idea might have the town as a trading post (for furs, gold, spices, whatever) that cut itself off. After a hard winter full of raids and food shortages - and no support from the parent city - a strong, charismatic knight cut all ties with the parent city (too busy dealing with the plague to send support) and created his own order of knights. The new leader built a strong keep and was able to maintain his sovereignty while the parent city didn't think the small border outpost worth any kind of siege.

***
Hope you can get some kind of inspiration from this.