D&D 4E My Neverwinter Campaign. (WAS: 4e Any contradictions between FR guides and Neverwinter setting?)

[Scrivener of Doom]

As stated earlier I will be creating an arc for Herioc tier (plus a level or two if needed). I have minimal time to prepare, let alone the time required to get the group together to play.

First the caveat that I am still in the beginning stages of going through the source material. I have now read bits of Neverwinter Campaign Setting and will continue to do that over the next few days to further familiarize myself. I perused the FR Campaign and players guides for background but will probably not reference them much any more.

I skimmed the Shards adventure, and also have Gates of Neverdeath but have not looked at it yet. I am considering buying "Lost Crown as Well" but have not. My understanding is that Lost Crown does not have the best reputation, but that would not neccesarily scare me away. (snip)

Firstly, sorry for the really late reply. Real life has intruded on my unreal life of late and it definitely has priority.

Lost Crown is a bit of a railroad but has some good bits. The "flushed into the sewers" scene is priceless. I adapted that for my Paragon Tier PCs... but I wouldn't spend much to acquire it. But Shards? More on that in a moment....

(snip) Here is why, and what I am thinking:
[*]each of the players will have a Neverwinter Specific background (not sure which ones yet but definitely an Ill. Guardian Eladrin in the mix, looking for info about his past/homeland)
[*]I have limited time so must rely somewhat on published work (snip)

I actually tossed my players the Neverwinter Campaign Guide and let them read it... with the caveat that things could and would change. Anyway, they were good and focussed on the character building stuff and they were the best-grounded PCs I have seen from my players in 30+ years. It definitely helps to use the themes and backgrounds... and the Shards of Selûne adventure does a great job changing the flavour of different encounters depending on the PCs' themes. (It reminds me, in a sense, of what 13th Age subsequently did with their Icons system.)

(snip) [*]I am going to limit the 'factions' to 4 or 5: Red Wizards, Neverembers guys, Sons of Al., Maybe some Dwarves, ?
[*]On the other hand, As we move through the arc, I want to tailor adventures to characters' themes and motives if possible (snip)

My advice? Yes, trim the factions... but only once you know what themes/backgrounds your PCs have chosen. That will also make it easier to tailor the adventures as you describe.

I had a bit of time to prepare for my Neverwinter campaign so I wrote up material for a lot of factions and then culled it down to a more manageable number - New Neverwinter (actually a front for something else), Dead Rats, Red Wizards as major factions, and the Sons of Alagondar as minor faction - to match what the players wanted.

(snip) [*]I plan to use the Gates of NeverDeath as a start, quick and easy
[*]They will then, probably, move on to a shortened version of Shards of Selune as they get familiar with the city
[*]I then plan to use Lost Crown as the "fall back" adventure if nothing strikes the adventurers fancy right away
[/LIST] (snip)

Shards is simply brilliant. I expanded it to cover levels 3-7 and one of the hooks within produced the next arc of the campaign from levels 7-11. And then the Shards themselves became key to the successful conclusion of the campaign-proper from levels 11-14.

And I otherwise agree with your strategy with respect to these three adventures.

(snip) Will this framework allow them enough opportunity to go off and explore some other intrigue surrounding Neverwinter? I envision potentially characters wanting to find Gauntlgrym, Go after some Red Wizards, Take over Lordship of Neverwinter itself, etc. I just don't know what they will come up with and need a decent enough fall back plan if it takes a while for those interests to become apparent.

Hoping this ramble makes some sense.

Yes, this framework should work... as it did for me! Shards is the key. Spend a bit of time personalising it to your PCs once you known their themes/backgrounds and you should have a great foundation for building the rest of the campaign.

[MENTION=87576]Scrivener of Doom[/MENTION]

@S'mon

Either of you run or use material from Lost Crown of Neverwinter in your campaigns? I do think it is possible an Arc that the group will explore is whether one of them is the true heir. I am thinking of biting the bullet on the paper adventure (maps!). Maybe I should just go the 'drivethrough' route instead and have a look? (snip)

No, I never used the full adventure but I definitely used the "flushing" scene. If you don't know what that is, let me know and I will post.

(snip) I have to admit, for a two combat Railroad Station, "gates of neverdeath" actually looks pretty darn useful upon my read. If "Lost Crown" proved to be that useful, It may be worth picking up as my "main line" for the PCs to return to if the spurs they travel fizzle out. (snip)

I must admit, I love the way that Gates starts and, if I ran another Neverwinter-based campaign, I would definitely do something like that and kick things off in medias res at the docks.

(snip) I am pretty sure that This Neverember character will intrigue the team enough when they eventually meet him. (I hope the analogy works, but think "Arnold Shwarzenegger in his role as the Governator" Everyone seems to like him, but they are not sure why? And why is he so darn politically motivated, yet casually charismatic?) What is he up to? Is it all on him? Does somebody else "own" him? Hrm.

In my version of the Realms, Waukeen remains a prisoner of Graz'zt (a 2E-era plot point) and that means that the church of Waukeen remains a front for the cult of Graz'zt. Neverember wanted to become rich and powerful fast so, naturally enough, he tied himself to the church of Waukeen... only to later realise he had sold his soul, so to speak, to Graz'zt. And keeping this brief, Graz'zt's grand plan was to double the size of his Triple Realm to six layers of which one of these was going to be Neverwinter with Neverember as one of his pawns to make this happen.

That was the basic plot that my players came up against and they managed to save the city - requiring a trip to the Abyss - and one of the PCs was revealed to be the rightful Alagondar heir. Clichéd? Oh, yes. But it was a lot of fun.

Anyway, despite my late reply I am really interested to read how your campaign has turned out or is turning out so hope you will post again.

 

[UnknownAtThisTime]

Anyway, despite my late reply I am really interested to read how your campaign has turned out or is turning out so hope you will post again.

I really appreciate the feedback.

We will probably get our first session going in a week or two, but it will mostly be scene setting and the initial few encounters. It will help me define where they want to go first, based on my framework above and the feedback of others - and what the players' seem intent upon. I will then have more work ahead.

I have the shard's adventure, and I am pretty sure it is going to come in to play. I think the lady protag will be a passeneger on the arriving boat with them. Whether they seem interested in her will determine if they help her or ignore the fallen tears. I also opted for drivethru-ing "Lost Crown". As a long "Encounters" adventure it is fairly well constricted, but there is certainly material, if not an actual plot line, we will likely end up using.

More to come!

 

[MoutonRustique]

/poke /poke

Just /poking to see if we can get an update on what transpired/direction you guys chose.

 

[UnknownAtThisTime]

Hello interested parties.
@MoutonRustique
@Scrivener of Doom
@S'mon



We commenced the campaign last week with what I call "Opening Credits", a couple hours long session intended to kick the campaign off and give me an idea of where they want to go. In general, I am using Neverdeath as the intro, and will be weaving a modified "Lost Crown" and "Shards of Selune" as the trunks for the adventure tree. Adding branches for what the players come up with. (Already mentioned, a search for Gauntlygrym, and obviously there are pirates on one of these earthmotes, where is Sharandar?, etc)

I am a fairly straightforward D&Der. I like my elves to be elves, and my dwarves to be dwarves. Medieval High Fantasy is the pinnacle for me. Serious fighting men and wizards battling serious dragons using swords and fireballs.

... so naturally the party has built themselves with good old standbyes such as .... A TinkererGnome (from April fools Dragon Mag) Sha'ir, A racoondog Hengeyokai Skald, and an Eladrin BladeDancer. He and his blades dance of course, they don't sing. So, you know, the normal serious stuff.

The opening session went mostly to form as the train left the Gates of Neverdeath railroad station.

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As Spring announced it’s arrival -with waves cresting, gulls squawking, and harbor bells ringing in the back ground- (we rarely use sound effects but I used them to open the campaign) our heroes set off from the metropolis of Waterdeep aboard a quick ship to the devastated but rebuilding city of NeverWinter.

They were each individually approached by a half-elf adventurer named Seldra, and hired on to accompany her and her cargo – a small box which she kept with her at all times- on the 4 day journey to the docks of Neverwinter. The trip was uneventful, and the heroes shared a few minor details about themselves with one another to pass the time. In addition to the heroes, there was a team of a half dozen sailors, and an Eladrin Priestess of Selune named Jasmine on the vessel. (As they arrived in Neverwinter at Dusk, Jasmine mentioned off hand a shooting star.....)

As the ship docked in Neverwinter, several undead creatures rose up to attack. While the heroes were busy dispatching the zombies and skeletons, Seldra was taken down by a (poison) arrow shot by a hiding archer. The Skald immediately noticed a human form in a quick red flash of fabric appear next to Seldra, remove her box, then reappear on the dock to escape in to the city. As Seldra “came to”, with the timely assistance of a character’s healing potion, she implored the heroes to make chase. Three of the heroes decided to run through a crowded throng of people, but the Racoon, quick thinker that he is, and also having fur, a tail, and tiny little racoon hands, quickly changed form, scurried to the top of a nearby building, rolled a 20, and got a terrific glimpse of a bald headed man in tattered red robes heading toward “the graveyards”. He lept from building to building, following as best he could while directing traffic of the team below until the buildings gave way to ….

The Gates of NeverDeath Cemetery.

Once inside the decrepit cemetery, the gates slammed close, trapping the heroes among the headstones. Surrounded by Zombies and Gravehounds, the team interrupted the man in red as he clutched a Silver Crown above his head muttering some chants or incantations. Or a doo-wop. His attention soon turned and he joined the pitched battle, casting his necrotic aura about while the Zombies “crushed” and the Grave Hounds “gnashed”. Despite the TinkererGnome going quickly unconscious (three rounds out of the battle unfortunately) the brave team dispatched the last of the baddies just as Seldra arrived to break down the gate.

Barely giving the heroes a glance, she dropped a sack at their feet, picked the crown off the dead body of the Red Wizard, and took off in to the crowd that had amassed (a safe distance away mind you) at the Gates of NeverDeath.

End opening credits.

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The heroes are absolutely exhausted of their powers and some surges, due to back to back battles. Even still, it SOUNDS like they think they are going to chase Seldra down. The Eladrin wants to go temple shopping, and expressed a serious interests in following up Jasmine, so the Shards hook has been set. (The other two tears will fall momentarily). There is a Dwarf (Heir of Delzoun) who misguidedly thinks the crown might be his. As mentioned, the Pirates Stronghold Earth Mote is like candy for one of these guys. Good stuff so far.

 

[MoutonRustique]

Thank you very much for the report - looks like things are well on their way!

Also, this made me laugh... perhaps a bit too much.

I am a fairly straightforward D&Der. I like my elves to be elves, and my dwarves to be dwarves. Medieval High Fantasy is the pinnacle for me. Serious fighting men and wizards battling serious dragons using swords and fireballs.

... so naturally the party has built themselves with good old standbyes such as .... A TinkererGnome (from April fools Dragon Mag) Sha'ir, A racoondog Hengeyokai Skald, and an Eladrin BladeDancer. He and his blades dance of course, they don't sing. So, you know, the normal serious stuff.