Looking for ideas for the Rod of Seven Parts?

[der_kluge]

I'm running my players through the Rod of 7 Parts. The 2nd edition boxed set, you ask? No, not really. Thematically, I guess it's close. But I'm taking some of the very loose ideas from that boxed set, and using them. The players are currently on an island tracking down the 3rd piece, which is located at the bottom of a ruined temple complex, currently infested with Talonite priests investigating the corrupting magic there, which is coming from the remnants of a long-lost Moander cult.

See, nothing like the boxed set.

This gives me complete and utter freedom to put the rod pieces where I want them, and I have ideas for where I want pieces 5, 6 and 7, but I'm struggling with piece #4.

Piece #5 is an a giant underground complex ultimately ran by a vampire lord. Piece #6 is, as per the Ro7P boxed set, in a plane of Shadow guarded by a Pit Fiend, and piece #7 is on Pandemonium.

So, I need ideas for where to put piece #4. It could literally be anywhere. Looking for some ideas.


Also wanting some ideas on how to deal with the end-game of this campaign. I think in the boxed set, it calls for a struggle between Miska and the party, and the whole thing sounds utterly boring to me. Thus far I've been fairly vague on the specifics, but I thought what would make for an interesting end is for the party to actually destroy the rod, since ultimate law is just about as awful as chaos is. I'm trying to figure out how to handle that in the game. Maybe at some point devils will be willing to serve the rod-holder, in some effort to bring "order" to the chaotic world the PCs inhabit. That will likely be their first clue. In any case, I've got some time to figure this out, but any ideas on that would also be helpful.

 

[Celebrim]

Congratulations for realizing Ro7P's is probably the worst of the 2e mega-adventures and altering it to suit your tastes.

For my taste though, you've got a long run of underground shadowy places that I would want to break up with something completely different.

I'd put the 4th piece in a sunbaked tropical paradise that was part Casablanca and part Cirebon, and run a more RP and intrigue heavy scenario with a rival group trying to steal the piece from the city's air Genasi sultan and steal the pieces that the party has. Maybe spend time dodging assassins and have some twists and turns where the rival group hides their real motives and liege and pretends to want to help the party (maybe they are actually working for those very devils that show up later), or the party is being helped by someone that is actually a spy for the rival group, and the Sultan has good reasons for wanting to keep the rod from being reassembled and so forth.

 

[der_kluge]

I had considered something kind of like that, although something Al-Qadim-esque might be a bit too exotic for my meager GM'ing capabilities. I had thought that putting it in the middle of the City State of the Invincible Overlord (from the Wilderlands) would be rather interesting.