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<blockquote data-quote="Celebrim" data-source="post: 6491579" data-attributes="member: 4937"><p>This is almost too easy.</p><p></p><p>The noble is rich. The party is bribing the watch to look the other way. The noble starts bribing the watch to not look the other way. If the watch refuses, then the noble can probably find someone higher up in the watch to expose the corruption to. Just the threat of that is going to ensure the PCs become wanted criminals. And once they are wanted criminals, no one is going to believe them regarding the affairs of a noble. And they can't even run to the authorities about it, because they really are guilty of murder and assorted other nastiness.</p><p></p><p>Frankly, the party obviously cares for too little to avenge oneself on them well. Selfish greedy people have nothing much to lose. It doesn't sound like your party has honor, status, privilege, loved ones, authority, morals, or all that much ambition (or good sense). Crushing them will be all too easy and rather unsatisfying for an elaborate plot. All you can possibly do is blow away their pride, their sense of strength, and then leave them in misery or death. And sense they are low level and this is FR, the most famously OP campaign world ever, where barkeeps are 10th level and ordinary merchants can be like 20th, well, as a DM it wouldn't even be that satisfying to crush them like a bunch of insects.</p><p></p><p>Ok, here goes.</p><p></p><p>After exposing the PCs, in a town like Waterdeep, if you are less than 10th level, the city has resources to just overwhelm a party like this. The watch (40 2nd level warriors, 20 with crossbows and 20 with nets and clubs), backed by a concerned harper (10th level bard), the dwarf merchant (5th level fighter/5th level expert), the noble (8th level noble), 4 sergeants (4th level fighters), 5 concerned priests of Tyr (5th level clerics), and a captain (10th level fighter) show up to arrest the party. The party is magically held, beaten unconscious, and wake up in separate cells naked gagged, blindfolded, jailed, and in cangues. They are unable to even feed themselves. Word has been sent that the party contains at least one dangerous sorcerer, and with the overwhelming evidence of their guilt the party isn't even allowed to testify on their own behalf. They are swiftly sent to court, and found guilty. The prosecutor asks for the death penalty, but the judge (who's a close personal friend of the corrupt noble) declares that a swift death is too good for scum like this, and that after identifying any spellcasters whose tongues are to be ripped out, the party is to be sent to the galleys to row for life. </p><p></p><p>These sentence is speedily executed. The party finds itself on a galley, it's spellcasters unable to speak, chained to a slave boat. They spend a day rowing naked in the sun and are sunburnt. That night however, the corrupt overseer sales the party (as arranged) to a zhentriim slaver, who takes them away. </p><p></p><p>The next session of the campaign becomes an 'escape from the slavers' scenario, with the party in Zhentriim and the spellcasters tongues restored by evil priests - so that the spellcasters can serve their masters better, "such weak slaves being no threat". After that, the party can presumably do whatever they want, though likely that will be plotting revenge.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Celebrim, post: 6491579, member: 4937"] This is almost too easy. The noble is rich. The party is bribing the watch to look the other way. The noble starts bribing the watch to not look the other way. If the watch refuses, then the noble can probably find someone higher up in the watch to expose the corruption to. Just the threat of that is going to ensure the PCs become wanted criminals. And once they are wanted criminals, no one is going to believe them regarding the affairs of a noble. And they can't even run to the authorities about it, because they really are guilty of murder and assorted other nastiness. Frankly, the party obviously cares for too little to avenge oneself on them well. Selfish greedy people have nothing much to lose. It doesn't sound like your party has honor, status, privilege, loved ones, authority, morals, or all that much ambition (or good sense). Crushing them will be all too easy and rather unsatisfying for an elaborate plot. All you can possibly do is blow away their pride, their sense of strength, and then leave them in misery or death. And sense they are low level and this is FR, the most famously OP campaign world ever, where barkeeps are 10th level and ordinary merchants can be like 20th, well, as a DM it wouldn't even be that satisfying to crush them like a bunch of insects. Ok, here goes. After exposing the PCs, in a town like Waterdeep, if you are less than 10th level, the city has resources to just overwhelm a party like this. The watch (40 2nd level warriors, 20 with crossbows and 20 with nets and clubs), backed by a concerned harper (10th level bard), the dwarf merchant (5th level fighter/5th level expert), the noble (8th level noble), 4 sergeants (4th level fighters), 5 concerned priests of Tyr (5th level clerics), and a captain (10th level fighter) show up to arrest the party. The party is magically held, beaten unconscious, and wake up in separate cells naked gagged, blindfolded, jailed, and in cangues. They are unable to even feed themselves. Word has been sent that the party contains at least one dangerous sorcerer, and with the overwhelming evidence of their guilt the party isn't even allowed to testify on their own behalf. They are swiftly sent to court, and found guilty. The prosecutor asks for the death penalty, but the judge (who's a close personal friend of the corrupt noble) declares that a swift death is too good for scum like this, and that after identifying any spellcasters whose tongues are to be ripped out, the party is to be sent to the galleys to row for life. These sentence is speedily executed. The party finds itself on a galley, it's spellcasters unable to speak, chained to a slave boat. They spend a day rowing naked in the sun and are sunburnt. That night however, the corrupt overseer sales the party (as arranged) to a zhentriim slaver, who takes them away. The next session of the campaign becomes an 'escape from the slavers' scenario, with the party in Zhentriim and the spellcasters tongues restored by evil priests - so that the spellcasters can serve their masters better, "such weak slaves being no threat". After that, the party can presumably do whatever they want, though likely that will be plotting revenge. [/QUOTE]
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