Hi all.. I've playing the Freeport trilogy, and enjoying myself immensely in the process (so are the players). Last Monday, we began the last of the modules, and the players did something that has thrown me a little off guard. The adventure itself assumes that the players go to the ball, receive some vital information, and then goes off to find the Jade Serpent. My players didn't want to wait for the ball (in two days time), as they suspect something's going to happen at the ball (I can't really blame them). So they decided to try and get access to the lighthouse. They were repelled by the cutters at day, but they returned at night using Potions of Water breathing they acquired from a temple. Even though K'Stallo and several other influential NPCs (among them Liam Blackhammer) tried to persuade them to wait for the ball, they went ahead.
They gained access to the lighthouse and have dispatched the guards in the first floor and the cultists on the second floor. The bad thing is that a cutter decided to investigate some of the strange noises coming from the lighthouse, and before the PCs could hide the bodies, a patrol has discovered what took place and is now signalling the rest of the cutters. This may well turn into the end of the PCs, and I'm willing to let it turn out that way, but I'm just curious about a couple of other things.
Which of the NPCs should be inside the lighthouse? This is the night before the ball, and at least three or four nights before the grand opening. Should Drac, N'Tal or Gorn be there in addition to the cultists and the guards? Is there something the PCs can do to prevent the ceremony from taking place, even if the PCs are captured/slain? Destroying something within the lighthouse, killing N'Tal or something like that?
I have toyed with the idea of Drac and N'Tal showing up tonight as they gather reports that someone has breached the lighthouse, but I'm afraid that the PCs would get slaughtered by them as they are only 3 and 4 level, not having accumulated XP from the Black Dog caves / temple of Yig sections, especially not after dispatching up to 24 city guards (if they can pull it off). Maybe Liam Blackhammer and someone else from the Lady Elise faction comes to their aid?
They gained access to the lighthouse and have dispatched the guards in the first floor and the cultists on the second floor. The bad thing is that a cutter decided to investigate some of the strange noises coming from the lighthouse, and before the PCs could hide the bodies, a patrol has discovered what took place and is now signalling the rest of the cutters. This may well turn into the end of the PCs, and I'm willing to let it turn out that way, but I'm just curious about a couple of other things.
Which of the NPCs should be inside the lighthouse? This is the night before the ball, and at least three or four nights before the grand opening. Should Drac, N'Tal or Gorn be there in addition to the cultists and the guards? Is there something the PCs can do to prevent the ceremony from taking place, even if the PCs are captured/slain? Destroying something within the lighthouse, killing N'Tal or something like that?
I have toyed with the idea of Drac and N'Tal showing up tonight as they gather reports that someone has breached the lighthouse, but I'm afraid that the PCs would get slaughtered by them as they are only 3 and 4 level, not having accumulated XP from the Black Dog caves / temple of Yig sections, especially not after dispatching up to 24 city guards (if they can pull it off). Maybe Liam Blackhammer and someone else from the Lady Elise faction comes to their aid?
