How should I apply the following plot hook

[Sigurd]

I'd give you extra points if you managed to help the new player approach Hiddukel of his own accord. He should be the catalyst that calls the in the other players favour.

Failing that the life of a loved one. The liberation of a special soul? Maybe even a get out of death free card in the form of a magic item. I think it would be gracious to find a payoff for the player who is going along with it.

Perhaps some sort of ability: Gaseous Form, like the dead, or some sort of corrupted polymorph - a gift from the god of lies.


Sigurd

 

[Gilladian]

I think using his missing father HAS to be your buy-in. Give him a vision of his father. Load the vision with symbolism of the evil god. There doesn't have to be a speck of "real" in the vision - just make it believable enough that the character can convince himself that he'll find out something about his father's whereabouts if he goes along with the mission proposal.

This works especially well if you get buy-in from the player ahead of time. He's gonna be aware you don't want him to examine the dangling carrot too closely, and unless he's a jerk, he'll happily go along.

 

[ThirdWizard]

Oh, I am sure he wants to play. if I have to i can deal with it in that context. H ewill go along with it.

To be clear, this is not a Table Level problem. This is a Narrative problem.

I want a plausible in game way to get someone who might not choose so, to be obligated to perform a task for an evil god.

In that case, I would ask the player why he thinks his PC would go along with it or what it would take. There's no secret that he'll eventually be embroiled in this thing (on a metagame level at least) so there are no worries about spoiling anything. Getting the player involved in it in this case seems a reasonable thing to do. That is assuming, of course, that you're okay with players assuming control over the narrative outside their PCs influence in the game.

 

[Lord Zardoz]

To be honest, he simply does not know dick all about the Hiddukel plot. No one has told him about it yet. The whole thing ought to be a pretty good surprise.

END COMMUNICATION

 

[darthkilmor]

To be honest, he simply does not know dick all about the Hiddukel plot. No one has told him about it yet. The whole thing ought to be a pretty good surprise.

END COMMUNICATION

Kill the player(character!).
Seriously.
Thats what hooked the other characters. This PC needs to die in your next combat and be offered the same "be raised and owe me a favor" rule, which is subsequently called on soonafter.

edit: Whoops, murder is bad, mmmkay!

 

[ThirdWizard]

Kill the player.

Hire a good lawyer, though!

 

[roguerouge]

1. Give him the option of running an NPC for this standalone adventure, then having his old character rejoin the party.

2. Otherwise, what, the God of Trickery and Lies can't get one of his minions to pose as a good and/or noble and/or holy NPC? Trick him, man!

 

[Goobermunch]

How would you manipulate one of your players into doing something they ordinarily would not choose to do, on short notice?

The only backstory leverage I have on the character is that he is looking for his father. I could have Hiddukel tell him that his father is in peril, and that Hiddukel is willing to intervene on his fathers behalf. This might work, but I would like alternate ideas.

Anyway, what more would you like to know about the situation?

END COMMUNICATION

I think, sadly, that his father has died. Perhaps even killed by a priest of Hiddekul.

It's a very sad thing when one so noble finds his soul trapped in the realm of an evil god. But, for a price, Hiddekul would be willing to restore his father to life.

The price is aught but a favor.

There are a number of possibilities as to how this can play out.

1) Hiddekul is telling the truth. PC's father is dead and trapped in the wrong afterlife.
2) Hiddekul is lying. PC's father is not dead.

Regardless of which option you go with, there's a betrayal. Perhaps Hiddekul restores the father to life, but doesn't tell the son where he is. Perhaps the big H restores the father to his son, but steals his memories (as part of the bargain with the father to restore his soul to life). Or perhaps he's just going with option 2, just to mess with PC.

All of these sound like fun things to do.

--G

 

[Merkuri]

I feel like I don't have enough info about the new character, the party, or the god in question (haven't read up on the mythos in a while) to give you a specific answer. I get the picture that you want a plot hook for the new character, but at the same time you want it to come as a complete surprise to the new player so you don't want to discuss it with him beforehand.

What I would suggest is this. End the session on a cliffhanger. At the very end of your session, have Hiddukel appear and demand his favor of the party, then adjourn without giving the players a chance to have their characters react. Now, out of character, explain to the new player what happened (if it wasn't obvious from the in-character dialog) and tell him that his task before next game is to think up a reason why his character would go along with whatever the god demands.

Perhaps he's going along with it because the player already wanted to do whatever Hiddukel is demanding. Or maybe he also owes the god a favor from before, and never shared this with the party because he was embarrassed (same reason they never told him). In the end it doesn't really matter, but you are almost guaranteed to get a better reason if the player comes up with it himself.

Depending on your players, you may or may not want him to share this reason with the group. Their characters may end up wondering why he went along with it and only find out later. Heck, if the character keeps the reason a secret then the player doesn't even need to think up a reason until much later. If you're lucky he'll come up such a good reason that you'll have another plot hook and another adventure seed come out of it even after the party has fulfilled their promise to Hiddukel .

 

[Lord Zardoz]

I think I have my method worked out. I will post tomorrow with how things went.

END COMMUNICATION