Rat Bastard, or just interesting?

[Mercule]

Okay, my players are seeking help from a temple. I expect them to choose the temple of Mercy as their best candidate. So, I got to wondering what sort of favor would the temple ask in return (I prefer favors to gold for temples).

Ultimately, what I decided was that there was a small enclave of orcs who had attacked a gnomish village. Well, things went badly for the orcs with the gnomes using many illusions, poisoning water, etc. Now, the orcs are almost depleted and unlikely to survive even to get back to their homes. And the gnomes are still messing with them. The PCs need to save what's left of the orcs, in the name of Mercy.

What they'll be told is that there is a small band of warriors in the forest that are being harried and the PCs need to convince their attackers to show mercy. Location for the conflict will be provided.

Add in two things. 1) The party has a gnome member. 2) The adventure prior to this involved the PCs learning of orcs invading the human lands, and two PCs had a protracted, heated discussion about whether or not they should kill an unconscious orc.

So, am I an evil rat bastard, or is this just an interesting scenario?

 

[Pielorinho]

Great scenario! If I may bastardize it a little more, though: what if the orcs have a gnomish prisoner that they're loathe to get rid of? Rescuing this prisoner wasn't part of the Mercy temple's original mission, so the players can accomplish their mission without rescuing the gnome (the gnomish contingent thinks the prisoner is dead); but if they want to rescue the gnome, they've gotta do so without violating their oath to the Mercy temple, which makes things considerably more difficult.

If they succeed, of course, the Mercy temple oughta be very impressed.

Daniel

 

[Mercule]

I like. I may have to work with that. Of course, part of the deal is to completely flip things on their head ("We're saving what? And they're losing to what?"), but I do like an extra twist.

Thanks.

 

[Mr. Kaze]

Sounds about par for the course, IMC. What's likely to happen is that the party will figure that the Orcs are the bad guys and try to convince them (or slaughter them) into being merciful to the Gnomes. Ah the problems with that sort of ambiguity...

Of course, if they don't and do complete their quest, it'd be poetic justice if the Orcs then overran the Temple of Mercy. Remember the story of how a farmer felt sorry for a frozen serpent, so he took it into his home so it could warm up and then it killed him and his family noting "You knew what I was when you took me in; what did you expect?" or the more common moral "No good deed goes unpunished."

HiH,
::Kaze

 

[Tilla the Hun (work)]

It's a cool quest for a temple of mercy.

Personally, I'd skip that prisoner concept - too much chance of the party diplomat going "hmm... trade us that prisoner, and we'll escort you home safe and sound..." and then turn around to the gnomes and say "I can get you the prisoner, but you have to show mercy" - i.e. too simple a solution to the situation.

Want to have a lot of fun? Make the gnomish contingent nuetral evil. Make the orcs nuetral evil or chaotic evil. In an evil vs evil situation, whose side is the party on anyway?

Use what you said - the temple requested them to make the attackers show mercy to the harried warriors... Unless they do that, the temple isn't going to help them. Send an acolyte observer from the temple along as a low-level npc that must survive to give a rendition of the situation to the temple upon completion of the quest. Make both sides evil, and allow the players to invent a solution to the situation, once they've discovered just how bad this whole thing is.

Be even better if there's a paladin or any LG, NG, CG cleric in the party .

 

[Lord Pendragon]

This is an interesting scenario. One aspect I think you should iron out in advance, though, is just how far the Temple of Mercy expects/wants the PCs to go in defense of the orcs. Does the Temple demand/expect the PCs to actually take up arms against the gnomes, to save the orcs? If no, then it becomes something of a diplomatic mission, which could be fun. If yes, then you may have interesting character interaction, depending on various PC's views on justice, vengeance, retribution, mercy, vigilantism, etc. But you should have it clear in your mind what the Temple wants/expects. It also says something about the Temple, depending on what you decide.

Next, you should try and predict what your PCs will do, depending on what you've decided the Temple wants/expects. Will the PCs simply refuse the Temple of Mercy and try and find another Temple to deal with? Will they be willing to do battle with the gnomes? Will they attempt diplomacy, and when that fails break faith with the Temple of Mercy, by being unwilling to actually take up arms against the gnomes? Having a general idea of the inclinations of your PCs regarding these questions will keep you from being flat-footed during the run.

Sounds fun.

 

[eris404]

So, am I an evil rat bastard, or is this just an interesting scenario?

As written, no, not at all. This sounds like a great scenario that requires a lot of thought, creativity and role-playing on the part of the players. I love tough decisions in the campaigns I run and play in, so I am a bit partial. I have to ask though, do you give your players these kinds of scenarios often? If so, does it ever annoy them? That's the real test of whether this is a good idea or not.

 

[Rel]

I like the idea a lot.

In my experience, what will happen is this:

The Priest of Mercy will explain their desires. The party will look back and forth thoughtfully, as though giving the mission their due consideration. Then they'll say, "We'll get back to you on that."

Then they'll go next door to the Temple of Vengeance and see if they can get the same aid in exchange for helping the Gnomes hunt down the last of the Orcs.

I think I've been a RBDM too long because I seem to be left with a group of RBPlayers.

 

[Sigurd]

You could pull an important half orc out of this

Perhaps the temple has a vision of a half-orc healer, amongst or related to the battered Orc War band. Saving the orcs convinces the half orc that not all humanoids have to be evil.

Or maybe the Orc's have a right proper megalomaniac among them, who is destinned to lead his clan in a protracted war against a rival orc clan -- depleting the numbers of both clans.

Either way the temple of mercy might have pragmatic reasons for saving the orcs.


s

 

[Pbartender]

Hrm... Do have a reason as to why the orcs attacked the gnomes? What if the attack was justified in the first place? For example...

The gnomes recently and unknowingly built a colony on an orc burial mound in the middle of their hunting lands. The orcs may have tried to reason with the gnomes, or warn them off peacably, but the orc envoys were driven off. ("Ugh! The savages!") The gnomes were turning all of the orcs' prime hunting land into farms and orchards and building houses and stores on top of the bones of their glorious warrior ancestors. With no other choice, the orcs attacked to try to force the gnomes out.

The gnomes, however, still believe they're doing the right thing because of the "orcs are evil!" prejudice.