How to use Graz'zt as BBEG

[Obergnom]

Until recently, I did not really care about Graz'zt. After the release of his 4e stats I started reading some lore about him (The Dragon 360 article and BoVD stuff), and he started to grow on me.

I like the (4e) idea of him being an ex-archdevil, as i think he would have some of the devils of his assault on the Abyss left. Thus I could use both Demons and Devils in the Epic Tier part of my campaign

Oh, and there is this nifty Reaper Miniature of him...

While I think it is easy to use other Demon Lords, Primordials and Elder Evils (They want to destroy the world and their followers are quite mad) I find it hard to come up with a good way of using this more sophisticated BBEG.

So, what kinds of story archs would you play to set up your campaign for a final encounter with Graz'zt? How to use him as a reoccurring menace the players will want to destroy at the end of the campaign? What kind of goal can he pursue, that actually involves the material plane?

 

[Plane Sailing]

Perhaps he wants to get the same power that asmodeus has - and he figures that the best way of doing that isn't by killing asmodeus, but rather by using the same route and killing a god.

So how does grazzt want to do this? Perhaps he can do it by weakening an existing god first - by reducing their number of worshippers. Get the existing church of erathis (or whatever) on the ropes, then arrange (or appear as) a new messiah/prophet, direct worship towards himself (or better yet, discredit the target god, so that not only the existing worshippers but also the other gods will shun them). This then sets him up for his epic coup.

To make it really interesting, perhaps the god he wants to murder is one of the existing evil gods... making it easier to get PCs unknowingly on-side...

During Heroic level adventures, there shouldn't be anything obvious connecting it to grazzt (although some clues which in retrospect will point to him). If you go for undermining an existing god, there could be a linked series of adventures with "trouble at t'mill" in that particular church, with a secret movement in the church undermining and turning worshippers. Succubi are good at this kind of level.

Paragon adventures could be about getting to the root of demonic activity behind the problems in the material plane, fighting demons and their emissaries. Glabrezu were typically great tempters, I can't remember whether that is the same in 4e though. Perhaps the PCs have to fight off attempted demonic invasions to keep eyes averted from grazzts real plans.

Epic tier is the point where grazzt's plans are actually unveiled, and the party have to find the weak spot in the plans and foil them, before finally challenging grazzt and bringing him to justice to cement their ascension to demi-god-hood.

Hows that for an idea?

 

[Snoweel]

So, what kinds of story archs would you play to set up your campaign for a final encounter with Graz'zt? How to use him as a reoccurring menace the players will want to destroy at the end of the campaign? What kind of goal can he pursue, that actually involves the material plane?

I'm thinking something to do with a McGuffin of some sort.

Or better yet, perhaps some notable NPC (a great hero or terrible villain) of the world is one of his offspring.

As you can probably tell I'm full of idea fragments.

 

[Snoweel]

Hows that for an idea?

Considerably more inspiring and helpful than an idea fragment.

 

[Obergnom]

Plain Sailing,

great idea! My current heroic tier campaign is about a cult of Iyachtu Xvim (Son of Bane, he was killed when Bane reappeared in the Forgotten Realms, his cult prays to him as the God of Human Supremacy) using the Church of Bane to help them commiting a powerful ritual that will kill all creatures with fey blood in a huge area.

As Xvim is actually no more, Graz'zt could easily use this cult for his own dark ends, and set up Bane as his victim.

I see a problem there, of course... Bane is not exactly a whimp either, and my players might not want to interfere with someone trying to get rid of him.

 

[Mathew_Freeman]

I see a problem there, of course... Bane is not exactly a whimp either, and my players might not want to interfere with someone trying to get rid of him.

It occours to me that in that case, you need to run some 'side' adventures dealing with the enemies of the PC's directly attempting to do the work of Graz'zt. Let them find out exactly how he IS worse than Bane - you may, of course, need to come up with some truly nasty stuff for these cultists to be plotting.

Perhaps drop some hints that Bane may be bad, but if Graz'zt takes him down he'll be everything Bane was, AND MORE?! Bwahahahahahah, etc...

 

[Desdichado]

Where are his 4e stats? I missed that somehow...

 

[Obergnom]

Below the Ampersand Article

Ampersand: What Happens in Vegas ...

 

[Lurks-no-More]

Oh, and there is this nifty Reaper Miniature of him...

You mean this?

 

[Obryn]

One of the wonderful things about Graz'zt is that he's sneaky and devious.

Quite literally, you could make him behind anything. Just come up with a plotline, maybe toss in an anomaly or two, and the PCs never even need to know he was involved.

Heck, you can even retroactively change previous adventures, and make it so he had a hand in them, too.

Evil geniuses are fun.

-O