How do you get high-level characters to travel

[XCorvis]

I think the biggest problem with high level parties and teleport is the existance of divination magic.

"The Lost Temple is somewhere in the south, you say? Let me consult my mirror for a bit, then I'll teleport us straight there."
(Yes, I know scry has to be on a person, but there is other divination magic availible. A smart party can usually narrow it down quite a bit.)

 

[Altalazar]

I think the biggest problem with high level parties and teleport is the existance of divination magic.

"The Lost Temple is somewhere in the south, you say? Let me consult my mirror for a bit, then I'll teleport us straight there."
(Yes, I know scry has to be on a person, but there is other divination magic availible. A smart party can usually narrow it down quite a bit.)

Well, obviously the adventure can't be about locating the temple. Or rather, any temple that COULD be so located with divination magic already would have been found and looted already. So that is not an item of interest.

So just keep that in mind - forced travel or mystery locations, like kobolds, are not for high-level adventures. Let go. Expand your mind in new directions. Why would you want to keep playing the same old tired adventures anyway, when there are new possibilities to explore at the higher levels?

 

[ZSutherland]

Your other option is a bit of a compromise between letting go of what you enjoy as a DM and forcing/tricking/enticing them into not relying solely on their newfound uber-spells. That is: make the ship so cool that they won't part with it. Maybe it flies, has room for their cohorts and followers (who crew the thing), can travel between planes of existance in some form or fashion, etc. Now it's worth taking. It may not be adventure on the high-seas all the time, but adventure on the high-sky or swashbuckling with Githyanki pirates while sailing the Astral. You get to keep some of your theme, they get to exercise cool new abilities, and have a home base that's unique and memorable.

Just a thought.

Z

 

[Altalazar]

Do it the American way! Give 'em Frequent Caravan Miles they can redeem for cash and prizes!

 

[dvvega]

Sutherland has a good idea. I did something similar but with a magic item the party had. It started out pretty useless, but during unrelated quests they found gems that were to be used with the item. Funnily enough they sold the gems before realising their mistake and then the fun began.

The long and the short, have quests to find the "missing pieces" of their ship. Yes it has a wheel, however the original wheel happens to be in a museum of a powerful mage. When attached the wheel gives the captain something akin to the Command armour ability.

Then there are the very original rigging ropes spread over the continent being used on various ships, etc etc. Those ships have some minor magical properties due to the ropses, but when fully assembled on the party's ship it adds some new benefits.

And so on. You could essentially add a background scavenger hunt to the whole ship idea for your adventure. Hmmm that has me thinking about my own adventure ideas now

 

[SkidAce]

I think it all depends on the campaign you are running. If teleport is a long lost spell of the ancient chaos mages and nobody else in the world has it...and the players know this when they create their characters....no problem.

If the bad guy always teleports in...wizards use teleport circel as mass transit...and then when players get high enough level to use it you limit their abilities...then you have a BIG problem.

To the origional subject....find out if they want to enjoy "on the ship" adventures and then work with them to find reasons they travel with the ship...as mentioned above by others.

 

[jester47]

Ok,

I am running a Forgotten Realms campaign and I suspect I will have to deal with this in turn.

My plan is such: I realised a while ago that overland travel has hazards. Thats what makes it so interesting. Thats why DMs like it. However, it is not always expedient for you to detail every little bit of travel.

(As an Aside - Right now, my characters are travelling back and forth between everlund and the town of Oakhurst which is a common stopping point between Everlund and Yarter. To have an encounter every time they make the journy slows things down. So in essence they might as well be teleporting. Its just a different method of resource usage.)

But Shadow/windwalk and Teleport have hazards all thier own beyond what you normally get in overland travel. All you have to do to make these interesting is add certain hazards that make their use somthing that is not to be taken lightly. Teleport, while instantaneous, does use the astral plane. Now in a place as magic heavy and old as the forgotten realms what are the chances someone has been mucking about with the astrals interface with the prime? With these thoughts in mind, one realises that Teleport or any improved magic can (and should) be as risky as overland travel.

As for a high level sea faring campaign, I think it can be done without contrivance. Teleporting into somthing that moves can be very difficult. If you make the ship the center of your campaign i.e. the base of operations, then yes the characters can leave but it is hard for them to come back (the space that they are teleporting to no longer has a ships deck beneath it!) unless they make arrangments to meet the ship somewhere or have some special recall technique etc etc.