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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Quickleaf" data-source="post: 3971720" data-attributes="member: 20323">I envision 4e Planescape as satirical/darkly humorous political-philosophical bangsian fantasy. I would use the Faction War as an excuse to redesign the setting - boil it down to its core then work from there.It's satire because it turns fantasy and fairytale tropes on their head. E.g. A tribe of trolls enjoy reading history (knowledge is power) and are afraid of leaving from under the bridge which guards the portal the PCs need to access.It's philosophical because, while Good & Evil exist, the focus of the campaign is on moral dilemmas - the hard questions that don't have a clear right answer. Instead, each course of action has different rewards/drawbacks. E.g. What is an effective prison system? Who belongs there? How is it funded & managed? Is the justice retributive or restorative? It's political because everyone, even the noblest paladin or celestial proxy, has a point of view, a vested interested, a "rub". There are many factions (more than originally presented), each with a distinct political goal and sphere of power. Allegiance ranks could be used (as in Living Kalamar) for faction membership, and there'd be rules for politics (as in Atlas Games "Dynasties & Demagogues").It's bangsian fantasy because the journeys to the otherworlds are paralleled by inner journeys of the PCs into the underworld.  In some ways Sigil could take on aspects of the Ghostwalk setting as a debarkation point for Orpheus type adventures like seeking counsel with a dead ancestor or bartering for a dead friend's life.Some ideas...The Lady of Pain: Leave her a mystery, and refer to her by other names "Dread Majesty", "Her Serenity", "The Bladed Queen" depending on the perspective of the speaker. City of Doors: The City of Doors is the centerpiece, an urban mixing of mythologies, with the potential to access any place in existence to the one who knows the portal key. Introduce Throne Wardens as seats of political power (1 per ward) & actual magical thrones which allow holder awareness of portal activity in their ward. Naturally these thrones are coveted by the factions. Emphasize the mixing of mythologies...the universal/archetypal truth behind mythologies (E.g. the Athena-type goddesses allyPortals: Make them complex challenges like traps that require foreplanning/research and involve significant risk. Also include some kind of mystical sigil identification system for portals (hinting at portal's functioning/history/destination/key), but the mystical language is yet to be fully decoded. Uncoding the "sigils" could be a major goal of factions and invaders, a la Stargate. Portals function uniquely according to destination, so Feywild portals are cyclical and appear at certain times.War of Ideas:  Introduce core setting dilemmas (E.g. (a) Sigil's portals, (b) life after death, (c) nature of magic, (d) redemption of evil, (e) imprisonment of Lady of Pain). Introduce a point system (action points?) for making an action taken from committed belief have far-reaching impacts. Also provide in-depth information & mechanics on how territory changes "alignment/planar location" according to belief.Factions: Re-do the factions as tightly defined politically active mystery cults/secret societies with levels of initiation. For example, instead of Dustmen how about a psychopomps faction which concerns itself with guiding souls to resting place? Give each faction a coherent write-up with specific goals concerning the core setting dilemmas. Planar Adventures: Heroic tier Planescape - Save or defeat a faction/Unlock or defend a portal/Champion an issue/Instate or usurp a Throne Warden. Paragon tier Planescape - Save Sigil/Uncover a diabolic conspiracy/Develop a new philosophy/Win a political victory. Epic tier Planescape - Resolve a core setting dilemma/Save the Multiverse/Attain personal enlightenment, redemption, or liberation.</blockquote>

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