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 need ideas on a new campaign
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farinal
Learned Scribe

Turkey
270 Posts

Posted - 29 Nov 2013 :  20:33:46  Show Profile Send farinal a Private Message  Reply with Quote  Delete Topic
I will be DMing a new campaign that will start with level 1 players. My group dislikes railroads greatly, they like sandboxy games and they are not very much keen on a combat heavy game either. So I need to come up with a place for them to start the game and give them some hooks, yet not railroad them and create an atmosphere for more social skills and talking than combat.

Any ideas?

The Madmage
Acolyte

26 Posts

Posted - 30 Nov 2013 :  02:12:54  Show Profile Send The Madmage a Private Message  Reply with Quote
I'm currently running such a campaign (PCs recently hit level 3) that I set in Tethyr during its civil war shortly after the Time of Troubles (1359 DR to be exact). The lack of central authority gives players at the very least the illusion that "the man" won't come bearing down on them and that they have an opportunity at even low levels to effect change.
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Derulbaskul
Senior Scribe

Singapore
408 Posts

Posted - 30 Nov 2013 :  04:13:53  Show Profile Send Derulbaskul a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Waterdeep sounds perfect for them.


Cheers
D

NB: Please remember: A cannon is a big gun. Canon is what we discuss here.
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Lord Bane
Senior Scribe

Germany
479 Posts

Posted - 30 Nov 2013 :  11:56:55  Show Profile Send Lord Bane a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Amn during the war with the Sothilian Empire. The leaders of Amn were not all on common ground and each tried to do what was best for his personal interest. That should be a decent playground for political intrigue and schemes that the DM can draw out with potential backlashes on the war effort of Amn, including the war drawing closer to where the PCs are and maybe even a siege if the PCs have done something with greater effect that may or may not have benefitted Amn.

The driving force in the multiverse is evil, for it forces good to act.
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Alruane
Senior Scribe

USA
434 Posts

Posted - 30 Nov 2013 :  12:02:09  Show Profile Send Alruane a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Derulbaskul

Waterdeep sounds perfect for them.





Agreed!

" I wonder if you are destined to be forgotten. Will your life fade in the shadow of greater beings?"
~Joneleth Irenicus

"Wisdom? My dear boy, wisdom is knowing that you do not know everything. Wisdom is realizing, a wise man ALWAYS has questions. Not answers."

~Alruane
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farinal
Learned Scribe

Turkey
270 Posts

Posted - 09 Dec 2013 :  03:43:34  Show Profile Send farinal a Private Message  Reply with Quote
I have decided to run the game in Silver Marches in 1371 or 1372. I don't want Obould and his orcs running around yet. I want to add Gerrti, Obould, Arcane Brotherhood and Sarya Dlardrageth as power players that work in the background. I have read in another thread from some years back some ideas on Arcane Brotherhood, creating a fake magic guild to make heroes do their biddings in disguise in Sundabar and possibly other cities in the region to gain control like they did in Luskan. I really liked this idea and I'll add this to my game. I can't decide on how to use Gerrti though. Perhaps give my players a chance to prevent her and Obould being allies. I want to make the Obould's war and WOTSQ happen in our game time. WOTSQ won't have much effect on the play but I have some ideas about a drow priestess getting caught up on the surface suddenly with no spells while on a scouting or another mission or something with just a handful of soldiers with her.

I also have no idea how to use the events of the Orc King and Obould's war in general in the campaign.

Any ideas are very much welcome!
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Kentinal
Great Reader

4684 Posts

Posted - 09 Dec 2013 :  03:57:37  Show Profile Send Kentinal a Private Message  Reply with Quote
Well war in the background clearly is possible. News or rumors can be heard of them. You said railroad or set goal not desired by your players. This means you need to always have events going on that the PCs choose not to follow. As DM it looks like you need at least three events going on at the same time, that the PCs can not solve. The raiding orcs to the West take the Town , while the PCs take out the Trolls to the North saving the village, a town to the East with their militia took out the goblin tribe that was raiding an Eastern Hamlet - Type of thing.

There clearly is more record keeping, the Town to the West might have been saved if the PCs chose that, however the Troll might now be a danger to the base city. The militia had heavy loses because they did not have the PCs to help. You need at least a few BBEG working againts the goals of the PCs some of them clearly should win, others clearly get defeated in the various battles. As long as the PCs do not decide on one target as most important odds are good all will gain in power unless NPCs heroes take the place of the PCs.

"Small beings can have small wisdom," the dragon said. "And small wise beings are better than small fools. Listen: Wisdom is caring for afterwards."
"Caring for afterwards ...? Ker repeated this without understanding.
"After action, afterwards," the dragon said. "Choose the afterwards first, then the action. Fools choose action first."
"Judgement" copyright 2003 by Elizabeth Moon
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Cards77
Senior Scribe

USA
745 Posts

Posted - 12 Dec 2013 :  02:21:08  Show Profile Send Cards77 a Private Message  Reply with Quote
quote:
Originally posted by farinal

I have decided to run the game in Silver Marches in 1371 or 1372. I don't want Obould and his orcs running around yet. I want to add Gerrti, Obould, Arcane Brotherhood and Sarya Dlardrageth as power players that work in the background. I have read in another thread from some years back some ideas on Arcane Brotherhood, creating a fake magic guild to make heroes do their biddings in disguise in Sundabar and possibly other cities in the region to gain control like they did in Luskan. I really liked this idea and I'll add this to my game. I can't decide on how to use Gerrti though. Perhaps give my players a chance to prevent her and Obould being allies. I want to make the Obould's war and WOTSQ happen in our game time. WOTSQ won't have much effect on the play but I have some ideas about a drow priestess getting caught up on the surface suddenly with no spells while on a scouting or another mission or something with just a handful of soldiers with her.

I also have no idea how to use the events of the Orc King and Obould's war in general in the campaign.

Any ideas are very much welcome!



The Silver Marches is a perfect place for this type of campaign. There are TON of places to explore, and it really has that frontier feeling. Yet there are large cities close by for the urban angle should you want it.

I am currently running a campaign in the Silver Marches during the same time frame. I too am running a very sand box friendly game.

For example, I provide a number of hooks (gold discovered in Deadsnows, scouts not returning from Dead Orc Pass) via role playing, or others I provide via more scripted "random" encounters (increase in lycanthrope attacks near Quervarr, or trolls rampaging through Olostin's Hold). I also use NPCs already given in Silver Marches like Xara in Silverymoon to provide an avenue to more straight up dungeon crawls if the group so desires to take her jobs.

I keep a number of these prepared at all times.

Then over the top of all this "sandboxing", I have a few larger, over arching plot arcs that can span several levels. Like right now i have a large story arc where the People of the Black Blood are plotting to take Quervarr and most of the druids of the Moonwood have disappeared. The PotBB have allied with nearby Shar clergy, and they also have a Beast of Malar somewhere in the Moonwood. They plan on making a major offensive soon. All the signs and rumors are there.

Should the PCs opt to take this path, it leads to a war between Quervarr, Silverymoon, the Moonwood druids, and the drow followers of Eliastree vs all the lycans in the Moonwood, with a Beast of Malar, and Shar clergy to back them up.

I plan on drawing on some inspiration from the Darkwalker on Moonshae trilogy, perhaps having Silvanus call up a treant or host of treants for an epic battle. Alustriel may even make an appearance.

I also have a few other larger story arcs such as this prepared, and they can easily be interwoven into one of the more basic hooks, should the PCs show interest in persuing an angle deeper.

I think of it in terms of Skyrim. Most anyone will have a quest or plot line available, provided you say the right things. And some times you just get a potential quest presented to you by doing seemingly every day activities.
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