Tayne
First Post
I'm not much of a DM, but I enjoyed collaborating with a friend of mine on a campaign he ran. I thought I'd share some of the highlights with the board in case it gave anyone any ideas they wanted to lift.
First off, the entire setting was fun. Initially unbeknownst to the players, the whole game took place in a pocket dimension designed to settle a bet between hextor and his brother heironymous - if the pc's had ever escaped they would have found that they were a few inches tall - literal pawns in a game of chess between deities.
The encounter began underneath a heironean temple, and the pc's were aligned with hextor, so the tension and stakes were high. Just at the end of the corridor were doors which screamed "THE QUEST MACGUFFIN IS IN HERE." Just before the door - a pit trap which fell a few feet to a gelatinous cube that took up the entire surface area of the bottom of the pit.
Inside the room, a dead wizard. A huge, menacing suit of armor. A deactivated golem. The skeleton of a small dragon. Furniture.
The key was to describe the setting and make the dragon, the corpse, etc look frightening. The PC's were supposed to be afraid they'd jump to life at any moment and attack. They were sure they'd have a lich or a bone dragon or a golem to fight at any moment.
What happens when the PC's walk up and snatch the macguffin? The furniture attacks!
The bedwarmer throws hot coals on them. The chamber pot spews filth on them. The chairs assault them. Everything in the room is animated, and they all attack on cue. Some of the pieces, like the armoire, are huge and formidable.
It was a great little piece of misdirection. I love subverting expectations. The relatively new players freaked and ran, leaving loot behind, with a gelatinous cube gnawing on a bed.
First off, the entire setting was fun. Initially unbeknownst to the players, the whole game took place in a pocket dimension designed to settle a bet between hextor and his brother heironymous - if the pc's had ever escaped they would have found that they were a few inches tall - literal pawns in a game of chess between deities.
The encounter began underneath a heironean temple, and the pc's were aligned with hextor, so the tension and stakes were high. Just at the end of the corridor were doors which screamed "THE QUEST MACGUFFIN IS IN HERE." Just before the door - a pit trap which fell a few feet to a gelatinous cube that took up the entire surface area of the bottom of the pit.
Inside the room, a dead wizard. A huge, menacing suit of armor. A deactivated golem. The skeleton of a small dragon. Furniture.
The key was to describe the setting and make the dragon, the corpse, etc look frightening. The PC's were supposed to be afraid they'd jump to life at any moment and attack. They were sure they'd have a lich or a bone dragon or a golem to fight at any moment.
What happens when the PC's walk up and snatch the macguffin? The furniture attacks!
The bedwarmer throws hot coals on them. The chamber pot spews filth on them. The chairs assault them. Everything in the room is animated, and they all attack on cue. Some of the pieces, like the armoire, are huge and formidable.
It was a great little piece of misdirection. I love subverting expectations. The relatively new players freaked and ran, leaving loot behind, with a gelatinous cube gnawing on a bed.
