clockworkjoe
First Post
when can I expect a response?
The Rat Bastard’s Club is now recruiting new members!
- Thread starter Lordnightshade
- Start date
Leopold
NKL4LYFE
grim and gritty horror fantasy in THG/MEG's Bluffside combined with allot of 1E>3E conversion material. Epic fantasy is coming when they hit the level with a twist of course...
All i have do to is go "Hmmm, Interesting" and the PC's panic and begin to roll up stats for new PC's...
Never done one of these b4 so bear with me.
Tortured Tumultous Side Track (Levels 8-12)
Wandering around the wilderness the PC's come across a strange sight. They see a half-orc tied to a windmill being tortured by a Succubus repeatedly. This half-orc is sobbing for he has realized that his god has forsaken him while being tortued by the woman who turned out to be a devil in disguise.
What must the PC's do?
1. Attempt to free the Half-Orc who is bound to the windmill by unbreakable chains except for a lock which is tied to the skelenton key which is in the shape of a pirate ship's skull and cross bones on the Succubus' neck.
2. Figure out how to get the succubus without killing her as she has been granted infernal powers as 50/+5 and SR of 50. Her only weakness is on a stone that has a Quall's feather token on it. The PC's must use this on her to tickle her so that she giggles with delight and pleasure and gives up the skeleton key.
Hooks:
1. PC's see Succubus tickle the weeping 1/2 orc with the feather and pout that he is "no fun at all!" and tickles the feather under her nose and laughs.
2. Commune or godly asking will inform PC's that She has a 'soft spot' that is 'light as a feather'
3. As Succubus cannot be hurt by normal weapons or spells by PC's and she does not leave the vacinity of the windmill the PC's will draw a conclusion between the feather and the succubus.
nothing yet. Although my PC's have setup a yahoogroup site against me to plan for future battles to attempt to outwit me. they wont' tell me what it is though...
email: bd_92@yahoo.com
Roland Delacroix
First Post
Re: The Rat Bastard’s Club is now recruiting new members!
I like to run whatever game my players want. I take the radically different viewpoint that it's not MY game, it's their game and I am just here to give them a good time. However, I expect to have a good time as well. For me this means challenging the party on as many levels as I can. Physically in fights, mentally with puzzles and mysteries, and socially with good NPC interaction. I realize that a challenge is most enjoyed, and if properly challenged the players will rise to meet it.
I can run any setting, but I preffer Mystara. Invisible moons, hollow worlds, fledgling kingdoms, mysterious artifacts, the setting is chock full of anything a party could want. With a decently defined political system (NPC's, laws, etc) I can work some devious magic.
Oooo, and I loved the Rokugan setting in 2nd edition L5R. Political machinations, secret plots, love affairs, and violent homicidal samurai.
I think 'Grim and Gritty' makes the players too depressed for a long term campaign, but I would run it if thats what the players wanted. IMO I could make almost any setting colorfull, rich, and fun.
Well, my players mention it all the time
When i run a game, I get the most out of my NPC's. Invariably, it is the intelligent bad guys that provoke screams of 'Rat Bastard!'. The BBEG doesn't just sit there, it's a dynamic game. Smart opponents know who they are fighting and strike t their weakness. It really pisses off Paladins when their enemy is a Bard committed to destroying their reputation. But it also spurs the party to re-assess what they are facing, and make changes to overcome.
And, like in the real world, '
happens'. I try to arrange scenes where players can shine, but occassionally something might randomly come up as well. Example: In an L5R game I ran there was a Crab clan 'tank', high level, playing for a year or more, equivalent to a 15th level 3e fighter maybe. He was well known as a heroic defeater of evil etc. As a random encounter he came across a respectfull, spunky young duelist trying to make a name for himself. It was obvious the NPC was a dueling specialist, in a very lethal game system, but the tank took up the challenge. Killed first blow. Just a random encounter, added alot of flavor, and the PC coulda walked away or taken a 'first touch' duel. I have no sympathy for stupidity though.
A local Baron, a Half-Orc, sends for the renowned defenders of justice (certainly not MY PC's
). His daughter has been captured by the Dread Pirate. He send them to the area the pirate has been seen at. He gives them a few potent items to assist, such as a Quall's Feather Token or two.
Arriving at the small, sea-side villiage the PC's search among a well-defined cast of NPC's. This is where it gets tricky as many of the NPC's hide the pirates doings from the (in their opinion) oppressive and evil baron. Expect a few sessions of the PC's just trying to make out what is the truth, who is the real bad guy here? There could be some conflict as well if the PC's openlly admit alliance to the Baron, or maybe get some help from townies if they act sympathetic to the pirates. Of course, everyone in town knows who reports back to the Baron, except the PC's. If act pirate-sympathetic to the wrong farmer, the Baron might have to come down with a few high level knights....
Regardless, the PC's will eventually meet the Dread Pirate captain. Decades ago this small town was a mid-land farming community. During a brutal civil war, terrible magics sank much of the surrounding land below the ocean. The pirate captain resides in a 3/4 sunken windmill a mile off-shore. A Succubus, she fled here after the current baron killed her one love, the late, rebelling baron. One stormy night a ship of mutineers docked at the stump of windmill to escape the winds. The Succubus shook off her sorrow and devised a plan to bring the current Baron as much pain as he had brought her. Her fury has been directed towards destroying his trade, starving his country, and invoking rebellion.
The PC's meet the Dread Succubus Pirate at the windmill, either following clues or led there by locals (depending on what stance they take in town). If they whack her, game over, hurrah, the baron's faction loves them but much of the populace hates them now. If they hear her story they might decide to let her go, maybe take her to the Baron. Storm coulds and lightning punctuate the scene in the watery windmill.
Whichever the PC's choose, Lo and behold, here comes the Baron with a ship full of knights, sailors, et all. Succubus/Pirate Queen flees to her ship outside, rousing the crew. She takes off into the windy night as the baron pursues.
At this point, the PC's could do anything really. If they stay at the windmill, the adventure concludes there, maybe the ships disapear, or the pirate gets away, of the baron gets her, dunno. That depends on where the group wants to go. If higher level have the Baron sink and leave the country leaderless, maybe the high level group could take over.
If the party gets on a ship, high speed ship-to-ship battle ensues. The ship tosses and heaves, requiring quite a few Balance checks. Waves pound the ships, carrying to Davey Jones locker those who fail a reflex save. Flaming arrows criss-cross the sky, until, it seems, oh no! They're gonna get us! (or, Theyre gonna get away!) Then the Feather token comes out, lays on a burst of speed, a few more rounds of combat, then the heavens open to a downpour that cuts sight to a few feet. They get away, roll credits.
Quite a bit of leeway here for side plots, further RP, etc. Racial lines can play an interesting part (if your world has widespread racism). Everyone knows 1/2 orcs are brutal, right? And Succubus are evil and unfeeling? Should be a fun game, IMO
I keep the details fo my RttToEE game here: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MyRttToEE/
Under Files:Mystara Gazzette. I think there are some older ones there too, pre-RttToEE. Players or myself write them up for XP.
mostholycerebus@yahoo.com
Lordnightshade said:
I like to run whatever game my players want. I take the radically different viewpoint that it's not MY game, it's their game and I am just here to give them a good time. However, I expect to have a good time as well. For me this means challenging the party on as many levels as I can. Physically in fights, mentally with puzzles and mysteries, and socially with good NPC interaction. I realize that a challenge is most enjoyed, and if properly challenged the players will rise to meet it.
I can run any setting, but I preffer Mystara. Invisible moons, hollow worlds, fledgling kingdoms, mysterious artifacts, the setting is chock full of anything a party could want. With a decently defined political system (NPC's, laws, etc) I can work some devious magic.
Oooo, and I loved the Rokugan setting in 2nd edition L5R. Political machinations, secret plots, love affairs, and violent homicidal samurai.
I think 'Grim and Gritty' makes the players too depressed for a long term campaign, but I would run it if thats what the players wanted. IMO I could make almost any setting colorfull, rich, and fun.
Lordnightshade said:
Well, my players mention it all the time
When i run a game, I get the most out of my NPC's. Invariably, it is the intelligent bad guys that provoke screams of 'Rat Bastard!'. The BBEG doesn't just sit there, it's a dynamic game. Smart opponents know who they are fighting and strike t their weakness. It really pisses off Paladins when their enemy is a Bard committed to destroying their reputation. But it also spurs the party to re-assess what they are facing, and make changes to overcome.And, like in the real world, '
happens'. I try to arrange scenes where players can shine, but occassionally something might randomly come up as well. Example: In an L5R game I ran there was a Crab clan 'tank', high level, playing for a year or more, equivalent to a 15th level 3e fighter maybe. He was well known as a heroic defeater of evil etc. As a random encounter he came across a respectfull, spunky young duelist trying to make a name for himself. It was obvious the NPC was a dueling specialist, in a very lethal game system, but the tank took up the challenge. Killed first blow. Just a random encounter, added alot of flavor, and the PC coulda walked away or taken a 'first touch' duel. I have no sympathy for stupidity though.Lordnightshade said:
A local Baron, a Half-Orc, sends for the renowned defenders of justice (certainly not MY PC's
). His daughter has been captured by the Dread Pirate. He send them to the area the pirate has been seen at. He gives them a few potent items to assist, such as a Quall's Feather Token or two.Arriving at the small, sea-side villiage the PC's search among a well-defined cast of NPC's. This is where it gets tricky as many of the NPC's hide the pirates doings from the (in their opinion) oppressive and evil baron. Expect a few sessions of the PC's just trying to make out what is the truth, who is the real bad guy here? There could be some conflict as well if the PC's openlly admit alliance to the Baron, or maybe get some help from townies if they act sympathetic to the pirates. Of course, everyone in town knows who reports back to the Baron, except the PC's. If act pirate-sympathetic to the wrong farmer, the Baron might have to come down with a few high level knights....
Regardless, the PC's will eventually meet the Dread Pirate captain. Decades ago this small town was a mid-land farming community. During a brutal civil war, terrible magics sank much of the surrounding land below the ocean. The pirate captain resides in a 3/4 sunken windmill a mile off-shore. A Succubus, she fled here after the current baron killed her one love, the late, rebelling baron. One stormy night a ship of mutineers docked at the stump of windmill to escape the winds. The Succubus shook off her sorrow and devised a plan to bring the current Baron as much pain as he had brought her. Her fury has been directed towards destroying his trade, starving his country, and invoking rebellion.
The PC's meet the Dread Succubus Pirate at the windmill, either following clues or led there by locals (depending on what stance they take in town). If they whack her, game over, hurrah, the baron's faction loves them but much of the populace hates them now. If they hear her story they might decide to let her go, maybe take her to the Baron. Storm coulds and lightning punctuate the scene in the watery windmill.
Whichever the PC's choose, Lo and behold, here comes the Baron with a ship full of knights, sailors, et all. Succubus/Pirate Queen flees to her ship outside, rousing the crew. She takes off into the windy night as the baron pursues.
At this point, the PC's could do anything really. If they stay at the windmill, the adventure concludes there, maybe the ships disapear, or the pirate gets away, of the baron gets her, dunno. That depends on where the group wants to go. If higher level have the Baron sink and leave the country leaderless, maybe the high level group could take over.
If the party gets on a ship, high speed ship-to-ship battle ensues. The ship tosses and heaves, requiring quite a few Balance checks. Waves pound the ships, carrying to Davey Jones locker those who fail a reflex save. Flaming arrows criss-cross the sky, until, it seems, oh no! They're gonna get us! (or, Theyre gonna get away!) Then the Feather token comes out, lays on a burst of speed, a few more rounds of combat, then the heavens open to a downpour that cuts sight to a few feet. They get away, roll credits.
Quite a bit of leeway here for side plots, further RP, etc. Racial lines can play an interesting part (if your world has widespread racism). Everyone knows 1/2 orcs are brutal, right? And Succubus are evil and unfeeling? Should be a fun game, IMO
Lordnightshade said:
I keep the details fo my RttToEE game here: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MyRttToEE/
Under Files:Mystara Gazzette. I think there are some older ones there too, pre-RttToEE. Players or myself write them up for XP.
Lordnightshade said:
mostholycerebus@yahoo.com
kkoie
First Post
If you don't mind, I have a some questions regarding the philosophy and intent of the Rat Bastard DM club.
1. From the requirements you've listed, it sounds like you only want experienced rat bastard DMs, true?
2. In order to promote an increase in good rat bastard DMs, would you broaden your membership requirements to include those DMs who have the desire to be rat bastards, but are so far unsuccessful?
I was just curious, anyway I wouldn't mind being a member of the club (it sounds like an excellent resource), so here are the answers to your questions.
1 - The style of game I run is usually mid to high magic. I enjoy epic campaigns, but that is not nessessarily the type I always run.
2 - I don't know how I could really answer this question. Really, its a matter of opinion if I really am a rat bastard DM. I think I am because I've been DMing for a long time and have had a while to perfect my skill at causing my players to 'quake in their boots' over the years. I've finally gotten my DMing skills down to the point where I spend most of my time coming up with additional plots and political agenda's to keep my players on their toes. As for just pure ratbastardness, well, in my current campaign I've caused my PCs to have the following done to them a) they are wanted criminals, b) they just found out they are responcible for killing one of the lesser Lords of Waterdeep (a merchant), thus they have a lot of people who want them dead. c) the whole group has no memory of the last 3 years of their life (the memory lapse ending just when the campaign started). d) the local shadow theives guildmaster knows they killed a lord of waterdeep and is using this to blackmail them into doing his dirty work. I didn't force them to do any of this stuff, but I didn't dissuade them either. This is just some things I've thrown at them the last 3 sessions as a result of their actions (except for the memory lapse of course).
3 -
Background: Grix, a half-orc pirate, has caused terror and suffering across the oceans for the last several months. The last known raid was off the coast of a major port (such as waterdeep) where he raided a merchant houses cargoship. There were no survivors. That was 3 weeks ago. Since that time the merchant house has hired adventurers to track down the location of Grix's ship, or hideout. Unknown to Grix or to the adventurers, the cargo on the merchant ship also contained some illegal merchandice that was being smuggled in by an Assassins Guild. The guild has also organized a party to track down and destroy the pesky pirate Grix, and anyone else that gets in the way. The leader of this group is one of the guilds top agents, a Sucubus who has disguised herself as a lady adventurer.
Grix maintains a hideout on a small island approximately 3 days sail off the coast. The island is rather baren, except for a lone windmill that sits just off the beach. In reality, the windmill is but a lookout tower for the underground headquarters that the pirates keep. 1 day before the players arrive, the pirates will have started a fight amongst each other. The lucritive haul has sparked some greed among the pirates, and two particularly crafty individuals have made claims to be the new leaders of the band and have started a fight. Because Grix is the only half orc among the pirates (the rest are human), he has maintained his leadership strickly by force. But a bad wound to the arm has weakened him somewhat and the other two self proclaimed leaders see this as an opportunity.
Parissa the sucubus leads a group of assassins. Early in the adventure she will come across the party as the Merchant House is making its public announcement. She employs magic to disguise her alignment, thus if checked, it will read as True Neutral. She will initially offer to ally with the PCs, claiming she has some inside information as to the possible location of Grix and his crew. If the PC's accept, she, and her 3 cohorts, will 'join' the party, and provide information about the pirate island. The Assassins guild had just recently recieved this information.
If Parissa's offer to join is refused, she will immediately set off to the island, and more than likely, the PC's will run into her and her band at approximately the same time they arrive at the island.
Finding the island. The PCs can find the island in a few ways.
- the most obvious is to ally with Parissa, otherwise they can attempt to follow her.
- if they do a little digging, there are some people in the docks who know of Grix's location. One is Berloze, who acts as Grix's fence. He is also a major fence for most of the city, and any thief can point the party to him, for the right motivation. The other contact is Verbang, a suspected pirate with a reputation almost as big as Grix. He will gladly give the players what ever information he knows, in hopes that the players will rid him of competition.
the pirates. The pirates are located in an underground facility that is capable of housing 30 pirates (at the time the PCs arrive, 1/3rd to 1/4th of the pirates will be dead from infighting). This facility can be entered via the windmill. Grix is currently holding up within his secret vault. There are only 2 keys that open the vault, Grix has one, the other is a skeleton key located in the refuse pit, that is currently occupied by an Otyoge(sp?) (or similar monster.)
When the PCs arrive, if they are not allied to Parissa, she will and her band will be on the other side of the island, moored in their boat. They had scouted the island, and found signs of the pirates fighting each other, thus are waiting for them to kill themselves before proceeding onward. However they watch the island constantly (most of the island can be seen from any direction) and once they find a rival ship, or signs of others on the island, they will proceed into the hideout. If they can help it, they will stay behind the PCs, allowing them to 'clear' the hideout, and enter at the appropriate time, when the PC's have killed off Grix and are checking the loot.
If the PCs are allied with Parissa, she and her band will aid the PCs til they find and kill Grix, at that point she and her cohorts will turn on the PCs and attempt to kill them.
When the PCs encounter Grix, the first thing he will do, is activate his Quall's Feather Token (the Whip), and order his guards to attack (he has 5 companions who have remained loyal to him). At that point, he will attempt to escape the PCs while they are busy fighting his whip and his guards.
If the PCs are successful, they will find the missing cargo, as well as the treasure trove Grix has stored away in the vault.
4 - I've been asked to do one, but I don't have the time in my day to write a story hour, so I don't have one.
5 - my email is kkoie@yahoo.com
1. From the requirements you've listed, it sounds like you only want experienced rat bastard DMs, true?
2. In order to promote an increase in good rat bastard DMs, would you broaden your membership requirements to include those DMs who have the desire to be rat bastards, but are so far unsuccessful?
I was just curious, anyway I wouldn't mind being a member of the club (it sounds like an excellent resource), so here are the answers to your questions.
1 - The style of game I run is usually mid to high magic. I enjoy epic campaigns, but that is not nessessarily the type I always run.
2 - I don't know how I could really answer this question. Really, its a matter of opinion if I really am a rat bastard DM. I think I am because I've been DMing for a long time and have had a while to perfect my skill at causing my players to 'quake in their boots' over the years. I've finally gotten my DMing skills down to the point where I spend most of my time coming up with additional plots and political agenda's to keep my players on their toes. As for just pure ratbastardness, well, in my current campaign I've caused my PCs to have the following done to them a) they are wanted criminals, b) they just found out they are responcible for killing one of the lesser Lords of Waterdeep (a merchant), thus they have a lot of people who want them dead. c) the whole group has no memory of the last 3 years of their life (the memory lapse ending just when the campaign started). d) the local shadow theives guildmaster knows they killed a lord of waterdeep and is using this to blackmail them into doing his dirty work. I didn't force them to do any of this stuff, but I didn't dissuade them either. This is just some things I've thrown at them the last 3 sessions as a result of their actions (except for the memory lapse of course).
3 -
Background: Grix, a half-orc pirate, has caused terror and suffering across the oceans for the last several months. The last known raid was off the coast of a major port (such as waterdeep) where he raided a merchant houses cargoship. There were no survivors. That was 3 weeks ago. Since that time the merchant house has hired adventurers to track down the location of Grix's ship, or hideout. Unknown to Grix or to the adventurers, the cargo on the merchant ship also contained some illegal merchandice that was being smuggled in by an Assassins Guild. The guild has also organized a party to track down and destroy the pesky pirate Grix, and anyone else that gets in the way. The leader of this group is one of the guilds top agents, a Sucubus who has disguised herself as a lady adventurer.
Grix maintains a hideout on a small island approximately 3 days sail off the coast. The island is rather baren, except for a lone windmill that sits just off the beach. In reality, the windmill is but a lookout tower for the underground headquarters that the pirates keep. 1 day before the players arrive, the pirates will have started a fight amongst each other. The lucritive haul has sparked some greed among the pirates, and two particularly crafty individuals have made claims to be the new leaders of the band and have started a fight. Because Grix is the only half orc among the pirates (the rest are human), he has maintained his leadership strickly by force. But a bad wound to the arm has weakened him somewhat and the other two self proclaimed leaders see this as an opportunity.
Parissa the sucubus leads a group of assassins. Early in the adventure she will come across the party as the Merchant House is making its public announcement. She employs magic to disguise her alignment, thus if checked, it will read as True Neutral. She will initially offer to ally with the PCs, claiming she has some inside information as to the possible location of Grix and his crew. If the PC's accept, she, and her 3 cohorts, will 'join' the party, and provide information about the pirate island. The Assassins guild had just recently recieved this information.
If Parissa's offer to join is refused, she will immediately set off to the island, and more than likely, the PC's will run into her and her band at approximately the same time they arrive at the island.
Finding the island. The PCs can find the island in a few ways.
- the most obvious is to ally with Parissa, otherwise they can attempt to follow her.
- if they do a little digging, there are some people in the docks who know of Grix's location. One is Berloze, who acts as Grix's fence. He is also a major fence for most of the city, and any thief can point the party to him, for the right motivation. The other contact is Verbang, a suspected pirate with a reputation almost as big as Grix. He will gladly give the players what ever information he knows, in hopes that the players will rid him of competition.
the pirates. The pirates are located in an underground facility that is capable of housing 30 pirates (at the time the PCs arrive, 1/3rd to 1/4th of the pirates will be dead from infighting). This facility can be entered via the windmill. Grix is currently holding up within his secret vault. There are only 2 keys that open the vault, Grix has one, the other is a skeleton key located in the refuse pit, that is currently occupied by an Otyoge(sp?) (or similar monster.)
When the PCs arrive, if they are not allied to Parissa, she will and her band will be on the other side of the island, moored in their boat. They had scouted the island, and found signs of the pirates fighting each other, thus are waiting for them to kill themselves before proceeding onward. However they watch the island constantly (most of the island can be seen from any direction) and once they find a rival ship, or signs of others on the island, they will proceed into the hideout. If they can help it, they will stay behind the PCs, allowing them to 'clear' the hideout, and enter at the appropriate time, when the PC's have killed off Grix and are checking the loot.
If the PCs are allied with Parissa, she and her band will aid the PCs til they find and kill Grix, at that point she and her cohorts will turn on the PCs and attempt to kill them.
When the PCs encounter Grix, the first thing he will do, is activate his Quall's Feather Token (the Whip), and order his guards to attack (he has 5 companions who have remained loyal to him). At that point, he will attempt to escape the PCs while they are busy fighting his whip and his guards.
If the PCs are successful, they will find the missing cargo, as well as the treasure trove Grix has stored away in the vault.
4 - I've been asked to do one, but I don't have the time in my day to write a story hour, so I don't have one.
5 - my email is kkoie@yahoo.com
Last edited:
seasong
First Post
Just a note, not directly related to Rat Bastardy, that I'm currently doing volunteer work critiquing scenarios in mmadsen's Iron DM Home Game. Critiques are harsh but fair (occasionally reaching nemmerlesque levels), but the only reward is other people's awareness of your brass, and any benefit you derive from my critique.
I mention this because I'd love to critique some of the scenarios above, but I don't want to take up a lot of space in this thread. If any of you want me to critique your rat bastard scenarios, repost them in the home game and I'll go through them. I won't critique anyone who doesn't repost there, so you're safe here
.
This offer limited to "until bored of it", but there will be others to pick up the critiquing from there.
I mention this because I'd love to critique some of the scenarios above, but I don't want to take up a lot of space in this thread. If any of you want me to critique your rat bastard scenarios, repost them in the home game and I'll go through them. I won't critique anyone who doesn't repost there, so you're safe here
.This offer limited to "until bored of it", but there will be others to pick up the critiquing from there
.
ichabod
Legned
Re: The Rat Bastard?s Club is now recruiting new members!
I am experimenting with a more free form game these days, where I've made teh world and the major potential storylines, and I let the players do what they want. Then I build the campaign "in front of them," based on their actions.
I have my own setting, which I've been thinking about for a long time. They way to make it really work hit me about a year ago, and we've be playing in it for about three months. It's called Dome of Heaven, and it's a very large, flat world, with a dome overhead that is heaven.
I like to run the same characters from low levels all the way up. My current players started at 3rd level, and just made 5th, but I hope to run with them all the way up to epic levels.
The party has come to this area of wilderness because in a previous adventure they learned of a necromancer's tower that used to be in this area, which might have treasure or arcane secrets hidden in it. However, after much searching around, and perhaps running into a random monster appropriate for the area, they find taht the twoer is just a ruined circle of stones, with some scattered glassware and other arcane remains. Evening is coming and a storm rolls in, forcing the characters to seek shelter. The ruined tower is on a hill top, and a flash of lightning reveals what looks like a windmill off in the distance.
When the players get to the windmill and search it, they find a well hidden trap door. It has a puzzle lock using archaic symbols for the three heavens and the three hells of the thirteen heresy, which must be juxtaposed correctly (this is something from my world, insert appropriate afterlife puzzle lock for your world here). It leads to the necromancer's actual lair, the tower being a decoy. The necromancer is dead, but there are various traps and remaining undead to be dealt with. One thing that will be found in the complex is the necromancer's last project. Using his netherworld contacts he learned how to create a new kind of Quall's feather token (not really new so much as lost knowledge). This is the wings feather token, which can give any creature or vehicle wings allowing it to fly (duration depending on weight of the object.
Now, remeber that storm? It was not a natural storm. what happened was that a half-orc pirate operating nearby accidentally tangled with a wizard who was out of his league. The wizard conjured a magical storm to cast the pirate inland. The half-orc survived, although his ship (which is magical) is now stuck in the trees in the middle of nowhere, and the members of his crew that survived have abandoned him. If that wasn't enough to make him sad, the whole storm incident was showy enough to attract the attention of a succubus who has been trying to get the half-orc. It seems his soul is overdue in hell, and he's been using magic to avoid this.
Anyway, when the characters get out of the necromancer's lair, they will come across the half-orc fighting with the succubus. He will call for help, and if the characters come to his aid the succubus will retreat. The half-orc (who will call himself Durruk) will claim to be a woodsman who looks over the area, who was attacked by the succubus when the "unnatural" storm came in. He will try to stay with the group, hoping to steal from them and disappear. If he learns about the feather token, he will try to take it to get his ship back to water. Meanwhile, the succubus will be out there stalking Durruk. If she can get Durruk's soul she will leave the characters alone, but she wants that soul badly. If the PCs can figure out what's up with Durruk, they can free the ship themselves. However, the enchantments on the boat protect it from strange users, unless they have Durruk's skeleton key (which he hid in a cache in the woods before getting attacked by the succubus).
Lordnightshade said:
I am experimenting with a more free form game these days, where I've made teh world and the major potential storylines, and I let the players do what they want. Then I build the campaign "in front of them," based on their actions.
I have my own setting, which I've been thinking about for a long time. They way to make it really work hit me about a year ago, and we've be playing in it for about three months. It's called Dome of Heaven, and it's a very large, flat world, with a dome overhead that is heaven.
I like to run the same characters from low levels all the way up. My current players started at 3rd level, and just made 5th, but I hope to run with them all the way up to epic levels.
Well, at five unconnected points in my gaming career I have been described as an "evil bastard," so I figure I'm halfway there. I like little things as well as big ones, like the door with three locks. The first two locks had poison needle traps. The third lock's trap relocked the first two locks.
I don't know if this is the right form for Iron DM, but here is an outline of an adventure:
The party has come to this area of wilderness because in a previous adventure they learned of a necromancer's tower that used to be in this area, which might have treasure or arcane secrets hidden in it. However, after much searching around, and perhaps running into a random monster appropriate for the area, they find taht the twoer is just a ruined circle of stones, with some scattered glassware and other arcane remains. Evening is coming and a storm rolls in, forcing the characters to seek shelter. The ruined tower is on a hill top, and a flash of lightning reveals what looks like a windmill off in the distance.
When the players get to the windmill and search it, they find a well hidden trap door. It has a puzzle lock using archaic symbols for the three heavens and the three hells of the thirteen heresy, which must be juxtaposed correctly (this is something from my world, insert appropriate afterlife puzzle lock for your world here). It leads to the necromancer's actual lair, the tower being a decoy. The necromancer is dead, but there are various traps and remaining undead to be dealt with. One thing that will be found in the complex is the necromancer's last project. Using his netherworld contacts he learned how to create a new kind of Quall's feather token (not really new so much as lost knowledge). This is the wings feather token, which can give any creature or vehicle wings allowing it to fly (duration depending on weight of the object.
Now, remeber that storm? It was not a natural storm. what happened was that a half-orc pirate operating nearby accidentally tangled with a wizard who was out of his league. The wizard conjured a magical storm to cast the pirate inland. The half-orc survived, although his ship (which is magical) is now stuck in the trees in the middle of nowhere, and the members of his crew that survived have abandoned him. If that wasn't enough to make him sad, the whole storm incident was showy enough to attract the attention of a succubus who has been trying to get the half-orc. It seems his soul is overdue in hell, and he's been using magic to avoid this.
Anyway, when the characters get out of the necromancer's lair, they will come across the half-orc fighting with the succubus. He will call for help, and if the characters come to his aid the succubus will retreat. The half-orc (who will call himself Durruk) will claim to be a woodsman who looks over the area, who was attacked by the succubus when the "unnatural" storm came in. He will try to stay with the group, hoping to steal from them and disappear. If he learns about the feather token, he will try to take it to get his ship back to water. Meanwhile, the succubus will be out there stalking Durruk. If she can get Durruk's soul she will leave the characters alone, but she wants that soul badly. If the PCs can figure out what's up with Durruk, they can free the ship themselves. However, the enchantments on the boat protect it from strange users, unless they have Durruk's skeleton key (which he hid in a cache in the woods before getting attacked by the succubus).
I have some D&D resources up on my web page at www.xenomind.com, but nothing on my campaign. If you email me, I can send you some of the player's handout I wrote up for it, however.
My public email is junk@xenomind.com. Contact me there if you want my personal email.
Pielorinho
Iron Fist of Pelor
Re: Re: The Rat Bastard’s Club is now recruiting new members!
Although Piratecat had a great answer to this, I want to chip in: apparently, "bastardry" is an Aussie term. I googled the word, and it shows up in government sources, in newspapers, in all sorts of places as a synonym for wickedness.
Can any Aussies vouch for this? Merriam Webster and dictionary.com don't include "bastardry," but I think they should: it sounds lots better than "bastardy."
Daniel
Zander said:
The state of being a bastard is 'bastardy', not 'bastardry'.
Sorry about the pedantry.
Although Piratecat had a great answer to this, I want to chip in: apparently, "bastardry" is an Aussie term. I googled the word, and it shows up in government sources, in newspapers, in all sorts of places as a synonym for wickedness.
Can any Aussies vouch for this? Merriam Webster and dictionary.com don't include "bastardry," but I think they should: it sounds lots better than "bastardy."
Daniel
Lordnightshade
First Post
Whoa, hold on there, yer jumpin the gun a bit, we are still evaluatin and waitin for more people to apply, and we are waitin for the Iron DM competition to finish before we notify people.
Once we have made our selections we will notify those people we have chosen and then post to this thread thanking everyone else for their application. So it aint over yet!
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