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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Magean" data-source="post: 7483002" data-attributes="member: 6896297">Hi,I DM'd a 5e session set in Eberron. Things didn't go as planned (as they  always do), so I instead let my players have a long sandbox session in a  metropolis (Fairhaven, for those who know Eberron). At the end of it,  they entered a haunted cathedral. Turned out the cathedral wasn't really  haunted, the screams and ghosts were all illusion magic. Then they  found the magically hidden entrance to the crypt. We ended the session  here. The PCs entered the crypt but don't know what's lying there.The crypt is in fact the den of the local dominant's gang. Now I have to  decide how to proceed. I have a few ideas, and I'd like people to give  their opinion. First, a few points to keep in mind:-the campaign as I devised it is intrigue-oriented, with a mixture of  noir and Bond feeling and lots of factions. You don't know who to trust,  any friend could be tomorrow's enemy and conversely.-there's a large conspiracy at work, and this conspiracy needs a foothold in the underworld.-PCs already established contact (in disguise, they wouldn't be  recognized) with upstart criminals, willing to challenge the established  gang.-the city watch may or may not be corrupt, depending on the needs.-I made the mistake of letting players create their own characters  independently, instead of working on consistent backgrounds in advance.  As a result they don't share a common goal or employer. They happened to  be there during a terror attack (from the conspiracy, but for now no  one knows whodunit), saved the day, became local heroes and this is how  they met. They then decided to enjoy the city together for a day,  eventually entering the gang's den.So, the goal of the next session (in the cathedral's crypt) should be to  set PCs on a common course or cause, whether they're noticed by one of  the power-brokers as useful pawns (or annoying witnesses to be  destroyed), or just need to work together to save their hide. After that  we'll be able to move on to more "modular" sessions, easier to think  ahead of.Now, possibilities for what comes next:1. PCs are "welcomed" by the gang and have to fight their way (there's  no way the gang is going to let intruders alive). If they flee (they'll  probably have to), they'll be hunted down in the city and beyond. This  may attract the attention of a powerful sponsor-protector: "you'll be  hunted down like beasts but I can help you with that... In exchange I'll  just ask you for help here and there, I could use a bunch of  mercenaries with good publicity and plausible deniability".2. PCs stumble upon a battlefield between the gang and upstart rivals (and maybe they'll recognize someone)3. When PCs enter, the city watch is currently cleansing the place4. Combining 2. and 3.: the city watch is in fact in league with the  upstarts. Maybe the watch is corrupt and the organization that's helping  upstart criminal organization has directed the watch to intervene and  help breaking the old gang.5. Either of 2. to 4. already happened, and PCs discover dead bodies everywhere6. PCs kill / capture someone relevant that was attempting to flee the mayhemWith options 2. to 6., we'd have to find a way to establish contact  between PCs and their potential employers. Maybe they'll be scapegoats  for whatever dirty work the watch did in the crypt, or on the contrary,  they'd receive credit for helping ridding the city of its scum, maybe  they'll be recruited on the spot... I like the idea of having PCs  jumping in a big preexisting mess but I need more solid narrative  threads here.By the way, one of the PCs also is a journalist. This could open the way  to deals of the sort: "I feed you scoops / tell you where something is  going to happen, so your articles sell well; and I profit from the  reveal."Alright... What do you think of my ideas? How would you weave that story  arc, taking the above goals and constraints into account?Thanks in advance!</blockquote>

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