Seeking help with my campaign storyline

[Nesh]

Hey guys!
so last night my group started out our first campaign. It is my first time playing and DMing and ive been working on the storyline for a month or so but i was looking for abit of help with it. Not sure if ive made some major plot holes or problem areas when running with PnP mechanics. I made the first part of the campaign pretty rigid so we can all learn together but then i want to loosen it up. Anyway i figured best to ask here for some pro help since ive never really played that much before (lots of online RP and NWN DMing but minimal PnP)










IF YOU ARE PLAYING IN MARCS CAMPAIGN IN MELBOURNE DO NOT READ FURTHER! ITS A MAJOR SPOILER!!!!

















Ok so ill keep this as breif as possible and if anyone has suggestions that would be much appreciated.

My world is a fantasy/sci fi combo. TEchnology exists (from aliens) but very very rare and myth to most of the population. Magic is genetically present in species from this planet (no one really knows why) and the aliens have been trying to get a hold on magic for thousands of years (trying to create hybrid versions of themselves to weild it. Failures created humans, elves, dwarves etc)

Dragons were the first true civilisation on the world, allied with aliens for hundreds of years before a great war ripped them apart. Dragons exiled back to the planet and two groups of aliens with different views had a massive war.

Dragons slowly receeding from the world, war with aliens caused massive damage to their world (common earthquakes, visible signs of destruction on map etc)

Approx 200yrs before campaign aliens invaded the planet through a "Stargate" which had been hidden for centuries. Huge "wh40k/armoured infantry, air units, mechs etc" army invaded and took over 50% of the planet before resistance began to push them back.

Since mages were the only ones who could really hurt them great mage armies arose lead by various factions. Major LG is the Ta'a'lai (my "jedi/goodies") and the LE Sha'tai (beleive in genetic superiority, authoritive control/order etc). Great battle finally closed the gate. Ta'a'lai defeat Sha'tai and drive them back to their own lands and take up defense of the gate.

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PRESENT DAY:

(So far in campaign)

players start on a middle easternish continent made up of large city states. large mage armies returning from war created new states amongst wreakage. various alignments

They began returning to consciousness and being immediately thrown into a gladiator competition not knowing what was going on.

After surviving they were brought to the vizior of the sorceror king who rules this city state. He said they were useful and sent them on a mission for him, forcing magical bands onto their wrists which prevent them from resisting his will (DC 25 to resist for an hour).

They were then sent off to complete the mission (1st premade adventure). After the fight they remembered their last memories of being assaulted and taken prisoner by slavers who then sold them to the minions of the sorc king for his tournaments (how he keeps his people occupied and nonrebelious)



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MY PLANS SO FAR:

THe players will spend some time in the city finding out about a CG cleric who is leading a peaceful resistance to the sorc kings rule. There is also a CN resistance operating outside the city itself which is small but seeks violent resistance of his rule.

They will go to the town and then into the mine and find a resistance fighter (instead of an orc shaman) has poisoned the watersupply and wiped out the mine (adventure is "the burning plague"). They will complete the adventure and begin returning unwillfully to the sorceror king.

On the way they are ambushed by the resistance. Moral dilemma over well poisoning (how far can you go to stop a tyrant?)

assuming they join with the rebels they will attack/free a slave wagon (how they came to be there)

They will then meet the rebel leader. He will give them an artifact and send them on a daring mission to get it away from the sorceror king.


It is actually a peice of a stargate similar to the one protected by the Ta'a'lai. The idea is to get it away from the sorc king because he is trying to create a gate to go places and find technology.

In truth the rebels leader is a member of the Sha'tai the global LE group and seeks to put the city state and the completed 2nd gate into his masters hands but since his followers are not aware he takes the offer to get the piece away.


THe players will then sneak into an ancient technological station and teleport across to another continent seeking to reach a certain contact in another city. Thhey will be chased by sorc kings minions until near exhaustion before being saved in the forest. (The forest is filled with huge Kashyyyk like trees and a group of elves who live in their eves. trees are kilometres high and have cities build on trunks)

They will get to the city and give the piece to the contact who will tell them whats going on (stargate etc) but during the night while investigating it they will be ambushed by the Sha'tai (dont know its not the sorc king) and while they survive the contact will die and the object taken before they get back.

From his notes? they will find out another piece is on another continent and head there since without a piece the sorc king cant create the gate.

Once they get there sorc kings men have killed Sha'tai, they then kill sorc kings men (vizior?) and get the piece which is in fact not a necessary part of it but the "blocker" which can deactivate an activated gate.

Find out about sha'tai/Sorc king vying for the second gate and the possible power it may hold, scared over starting a second invasion by giving access to the planet.

Players head back towards sorc kings city state continent, meet up with the rebels and forment a rebel army

**maybe sniff out leaders betrayl through investigation type stuff and diplomacy to bring another group (species/nation) into the fight?)

The players then lead an attack to take the city state and stop the sorc king and the sha'tai. Maybe spec ops mission while the main army attacks his land?

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Im probably going to have one major NPC who drops in/out of the story. The Ta'a'lai (world spanning LG "jedi like" group) have elite warriors called mindblades (soul knife) and one may join them/provide clues at times possibly having been part of the resistance.

Anyway thats my basic outlay for the whole campaign although i want to leave options for the players to make while keeping to the basic idea. Sorry about the length!! Any suggestions would be fantastic

THanks so much again from a newbie DM!

Marc

 

[pogre]

Anyway thats my basic outlay for the whole campaign although i want to leave options for the players to make while keeping to the basic idea. Sorry about the length!! Any suggestions would be fantastic

Several times while reading your background I thought my players would be disappointed with the railroaded theme of the campaign. Now, not all players are like this - I know of several groups that beg for a heavy plot line that they play a role in. However, are your players one of these groups? If not, break your ideas down more and give more "routes" for the story to follow. Lay out the elements and let your players create the story.

 

[S'mon]

This sounds a lot like a CRPG.
If I were you I would ease up on the railroading of the plot, and allow much more space for player decisions & autonomy - players usually highly value the ability to 'change the script'. It's ok to have a default plotline sketched, but be ready to deviate from it - indeed, ideally you should have 'juncture points' where the players _have_ to make decisions between 2 or more viable courses of action that will change the course of the campaign whatever they decide. Avoid prepping too much in advance, generally your prep for each session should depend on what the PCs decided to do in the last session, not on a preplanned script. "Plots are what NPCs do if the PCs do nothing" is good advice.

 

[Dirigible]

I had a campaign with a similar magic/technology line up like this many moons ago - my first homebrew world, actually.

I won't mention the railroading thing. You've already got, and will get, plenty of that from others

In truth the rebels leader is a member of the Sha'tai the global LE group and seeks to put the city state and the completed 2nd gate into his masters hands but since his followers are not aware he takes the offer to get the piece away.

Depending on how much moral ambiguity you want in your campaign, I think what might be fun here is concentrating ont he balance aspect, rather than the 'stop the baddies building the Doomsday Artifact' aspect. At the moment, the Ta have a monopoly on planetary travel - though I gather they don't use it. Perhaps the argument the Sah use on the PC's is that power corrupts, and it'll be bad for the world in the long term if the Ta are the only ones with access to such a massive power source. If you make sure to show the PCs during the campaign that the Ta are, perhaps, growing more used to their power, shading into abusive of it, and generally cementing themselves into the governance of the world, it'll make the PC's choices more compex and interesting. Will they destry/capture the gate for the Ta, trusting their goodness, or accept that a world with two opposing forces will be a better hybrid of stability and dynamism. In modern terms, a choice between a multipolar or a hyperpower political set up. After all, I took from your post that the Sha also formed to oppose the invaders.

They will get to the city and give the piece to the contact who will tell them whats going on (stargate etc) but during the night while investigating it they will be ambushed by the Sha'tai (dont know its not the sorc king) and while they survive the contact will die and the object taken before they get back.

Wait. The rebel leader (a Sha agent) wants to get the Gate piece away from the Sorceror King, even though her plan is to take over the city after the Gate is constructed? Or does she intend to seize control before then?

And, she sends the PC's to someone who reveals the truth about the Gate? Why would the leader or the contact do that? Why not send the piece to a Sha contact who accepts it, saying 'Long live the Revolution!' to the PCs, and then smuggles it to the Sha, with the PC's none the wiser?

 

[Jurble]

interesting replies thanks guys

Yah i guess i have a game plan out there but i do want to make it branch more, i guess im keeping it open and letting them go how they will. Made the first two sessions of play rigid so i/them can get accustomed to it. NEw DM, new players. but anyway...

with the Sha'tai (LE) this group formed before the Ta, founded by evil dragons who were the greatest allies of te aliens before their war. Took up a beleif in genetic superiority (cant exactly join them only serve them), beleive in a more ordered way of life to streamline the world under thier command? (would love to broaden that away from stereotype).

My idea for the Ta was that they were formed in response to the growing power of the Sa, all way before the invasion. They drew rank from the peoples of the planet rather than from thier own genetic pool so they gained in number much faster (magic users are quite common in my world).

Anyway they are scared of what came thorugh the gate the last time and that no one really knows much about it. So they keep it shut guard it in a massive fortress and will do anything to keep it from being opened again (pandoras box type situation).

I figured due to their "superiority" the Sha work through their own informants/spies etc to accomplish thier plans (disliked across the planet) so i actually wasnt going to have the players confronted with them. that said i like the idea of making it less good vs evil and more two different ideologies agianst each other. I was thinking The Ta are scared of the gate while the Sha wanted to use it to get technology to fight the aliens/improve their own lives on the planet? love some input on what you all think of that

As for the rebel leader being a Sha agent. He got the piece through the resistance and meant to get it to his masters. But the rest of the rebels are truly rebels so he has to fake it. When the opportunity to get it out of the land he has no choice but to go with what seems like the smartest idea to all the rebels. Not being the only one knowing this contact he doesnt have a choice with who to send it to. Course then he tells the Sha who it is going to so they ambush and get the piece anyway.

Or i could swap it around and have him lead them into a trap which could lead in a totally different direction?


am I going back onto that railroading thing again? I mean how much do you guys plan your campaigns? basically so you know where its going? more? less?

thanks for all the help

 

[Seeten]

Plans go on a Macro level, not on a micro level.

For example, I know who my LE BBEG Leader is. I know his motivations and plans. Knowing his plans lets me plot his actions. However, his actions change based on reaction from players. He drives the plot through his actions and reactions. Sometimes there will be further reactive forces. (The good guys, Ta, in your story.) They also have motivations and drive plot.

Basically, if you know motivation, instead of simply having a "This is what they do, then that" approach, if things change on the fly, you can ask yourself, "What would Jon the Sha agent do, based on who he is?" instead of, ", my notes are useless!" Motivation is great. If Jon wants the piece, he hires the players to get it, they fail, he hires someone else, someone else and the players fight over it when they get back there, trying to complete the mission, players win, Jon happily takes device. If Jon doesnt get the device from the first two, he may go back to the order and request assistance, thus losing face, and now hating the PC's even more.

Knowing the person means knowing how to react to everything that happens. Have your maps for dungeon crawls and all set, but maneuver your players there, dont stuff them into the dungeon like your whacking a square peg into a round hole.

 

[S'mon]

Good advice from Seeten. BTW I do like your Stargate campaign theme, it seems like an exciting campaign world that would be fun to play in, just be prepared to let PCs have their own agenda and let things develop in accordance with the way the players play it, inevitably things will change from your script.

I don't plan my campaigns as if they were novels, but I do plan events, usually a session or two ahead, maybe more. Eg the players knew for months that the Mongali Horde was going to invade before it actually happened, and much of the game centred on trying to rally resistance to the looming threat. But I didn't have a "PCs will do X, then Y, then Z" rail-line planned out, and often PC actions took me by surprise - they weren't 'supposed' to persuade their home country the Scornic League to incorporate into the (rival) Overkingdom of Imarr, but they decided that was the only way to beat the Mongali, and maybe they were right.

 

[PapersAndPaychecks]

For starter DM's, a good way to create a plot structure is one that's also often used in imitative fantasy novels. I call it "Collect the Plot Coupons."

The basics are simple. The players have to collect an arbitrary number of Plot Coupons. Once they have collected a sufficient number of Plot Coupons, they can trade these in for a Plot Voucher, which is valid for the accomplishment of a Plot Objective (traditionally the deus-ex-machina appearance of the white hat goodie-goodies and the consequent banishment of a generic Dark Lord from the universe forever (?).)

What the Plot Coupons are is almost irrelevant - they can be magic swords, magic rings, NPC hostages, doesn't matter. What matters is that they are widely scattered and therefore enable the DM to send the players on a cook's tour of places he wants them to visit.

In a dungeon, for example, you might have a door on the first level that has seven unpickable locks. The players need to retrieve the seven keys from various different parts of the dungeon, each key comprising a set-piece encounter, before the door can be opened.

For a more epic game, you might have three spellbooks, each of which contains part of a spell. One's in the possession of the High King, necessitating a courtly role-playing encounter in which the characters frustrate the Grand Vizier's Evil Plot To Take Over The Kingdom And Rule The World and earn the High King's gratitude; one's kept by the necromancer/vampire Thanatosis in his crypt; and one's at the bottom of the Riddle Maze of Elder Wisdom. The players need to collect the three spellbooks and incant the spell, which will summon up the Toothpick of the Gods with which they can finally defeat the BBEG.

The reason this structure is good is that it gives the players meaningful choices within a structured environment. They can decide which piece to track down in which order, and if they're struggling with one section, they can put it off while they go work on another one, gaining levels of experience and magic items in the process. But it also means that you can design encounter areas in advance in the certain knowledge that the characters will need to overcome them eventually.

 

[Jurble]

wow great advice in here. I think i have been going through this in a real novel sort of way so Im definately going to take alot of this advice in hand.

I like the basic outline i have but yah holding them to a specific path will take alot of effort and make it alot less fun for them. I guess in terms of my thinking i will look at it more as presenting them the situations ive imagined as options and see if they take them or not.

Intresting in Seeten's post about characters personalities. Thats something i got really good at with my online RP but in terms of my planning for RPing this i have been abit negligent with so im going to do more work on upping that abit, flesh out NPCs more and give them more personality rather than *insert generic badguys henchmen here*

I guess i just have to work on my improvisation. last session i got caught with my mouth open a few times totally unsure of what to say

As for my campaign setting, well im a big Sci fi and fantasy buff. Im in research and so spelljammer type "breathable space" didnt really fit for me. I like the idea of using magic in place of technology to help civilisation advance and building on that. Then i threw in your typical stargate Asguard type aliens (but some good some bad/own agendas etc) to increase the possibilities.

So where the game is set now, theres as much chance a dungeon will turn out to be an ancient alien outpost with blast doors and bits of technology around that they could find. However im keeping technology extremely rare. Also in the RP there is a network of defense satellites in orbit to keep anything leaving the planet. Hence there are rumours of great powers in the sky which will smite those attempting to leave the planet etc. And in terms of gameplay, a stargate just opens the possibilities endlessly. I havnt gone into planes yet but ive left open the option for planes, dimensions etc. Its fun nursing a world into being, drawing ,maps making up ideas for areas etc.

Ive given continents themes for instance the players are starting in a middle easternish continent but theres ur traditional european one, an eastern european one, an "africa"/south american ones. Its almost as much fun adding to the world as it is to plan the game!

Thanks for all the help guys!

Marc