Brendan 5E
First Post
So I'm changing a lot of Princes to suit the needs of the group and to change a lot of plot elemental that I'm not thrilled with. If you have any advice about changing PotA, please tell me before I ruin another campaign.
Spoilers abound, dear players! Here's what I was thinking:
A New Hook
The hook to find the Mirabar Delegation is weak. For one thing, there are so many ways to start investigate it that it would overwhelm my group. It's also an unrewarding hook, as there is barely any progress made helping them while the players clear out dungeon after dungeon of evil cultists.
A better hook would be one that makes finding and eliminating cults more central. I'm thinking that the Constable of Red Larch (An NPC I may have to entirely rework) has hired foreign mercs (the PC's) as deputies to deal with the valley's rampant bandit problem. Given that Elemental Evil is ruining crops, maybe PC's could also be called to investigate witchcraft cases too. This would make things more interesting as the players realize that banditry is only the beginning of the region's trouble.
The Elemental Eye(s)
Right off the bat, the concept of the Elder Elemental Eye (EEE) doesn't thrill me. It's a nebulous concept that never has much payoff discovery-wise. It also only exists to give the cults a reason to team up as the plot demands and to namedrop stuff from 2e. That's why I'm replacing it with an entirely different kind of Elemental Eye.
Instead of EEE being a nebulous force that binds the cults together, I'm making it four eye-shaped idols that are the source of each prophet's power. The new backstory for PotA would be that long ago, a bunch of Druids sealed away a powerful demon/abomination/quasi-elemental (Haven't worked out what kind yet) in the Dessarin Valley with the power of the elements. Four elemental idols are the physical manifestations of its prison.
However, as time went on, the prisons got weaker. Now, the Bigger Bad can manipulate those near to the idols. Also, mortal spellcasters can tap into the power of the idols to gain elemental power. Four adventurers (Those who would become the prophets) found the idols, and the Bigger Bad commanded them to form cults and are with one another, thus causing the Idol seals to weakened as the prophets harness their energy.
As the PC's and the cults do battle, the Idols will keep getting weaker, until the end of the campaign, when the idols will become spent and the Bigger Bad final boss will be awoken for a climactic battle/final dungeon (Not sure how to do that yet).
Trimming it all Down:
Since I want to run this all in one college semester, each Cult will only get one dungeon in this adventure. Also, the adventure will start at level 4, not 3. Water gets Riverguard Keep, Earth gets Sacred Stone Monastery, Air gets the Air Temple, and Fire gets a nerfed Fire Temple. I may make a new dungeon themed around darkness or all four elements for the new Bigger Bad for the finale.
Obviously, this has the side effect of making some of the cults total pushovers, but that's the price of brevity. It would also involve tweaking all the remaining dungeons in a thousand little ways which I will spare you the minutia of.
Spoilers abound, dear players! Here's what I was thinking:
A New Hook
The hook to find the Mirabar Delegation is weak. For one thing, there are so many ways to start investigate it that it would overwhelm my group. It's also an unrewarding hook, as there is barely any progress made helping them while the players clear out dungeon after dungeon of evil cultists.
A better hook would be one that makes finding and eliminating cults more central. I'm thinking that the Constable of Red Larch (An NPC I may have to entirely rework) has hired foreign mercs (the PC's) as deputies to deal with the valley's rampant bandit problem. Given that Elemental Evil is ruining crops, maybe PC's could also be called to investigate witchcraft cases too. This would make things more interesting as the players realize that banditry is only the beginning of the region's trouble.
The Elemental Eye(s)
Right off the bat, the concept of the Elder Elemental Eye (EEE) doesn't thrill me. It's a nebulous concept that never has much payoff discovery-wise. It also only exists to give the cults a reason to team up as the plot demands and to namedrop stuff from 2e. That's why I'm replacing it with an entirely different kind of Elemental Eye.
Instead of EEE being a nebulous force that binds the cults together, I'm making it four eye-shaped idols that are the source of each prophet's power. The new backstory for PotA would be that long ago, a bunch of Druids sealed away a powerful demon/abomination/quasi-elemental (Haven't worked out what kind yet) in the Dessarin Valley with the power of the elements. Four elemental idols are the physical manifestations of its prison.
However, as time went on, the prisons got weaker. Now, the Bigger Bad can manipulate those near to the idols. Also, mortal spellcasters can tap into the power of the idols to gain elemental power. Four adventurers (Those who would become the prophets) found the idols, and the Bigger Bad commanded them to form cults and are with one another, thus causing the Idol seals to weakened as the prophets harness their energy.
As the PC's and the cults do battle, the Idols will keep getting weaker, until the end of the campaign, when the idols will become spent and the Bigger Bad final boss will be awoken for a climactic battle/final dungeon (Not sure how to do that yet).
Trimming it all Down:
Since I want to run this all in one college semester, each Cult will only get one dungeon in this adventure. Also, the adventure will start at level 4, not 3. Water gets Riverguard Keep, Earth gets Sacred Stone Monastery, Air gets the Air Temple, and Fire gets a nerfed Fire Temple. I may make a new dungeon themed around darkness or all four elements for the new Bigger Bad for the finale.
Obviously, this has the side effect of making some of the cults total pushovers, but that's the price of brevity. It would also involve tweaking all the remaining dungeons in a thousand little ways which I will spare you the minutia of.
