My PCs will soon be entering a town with a spoooooky secret. Derro are kidnapping and experimenting on the po' folk! The advice I'm looking for: How do you nudge the PCs into investigating the mystery? They're all new players and so far have only experienced dungeon-crawling. I'd like to work in some cool RP encounters like this one but I'm not sure how to go about it.
Originally I was just going to have them happen by while a kidnapping was in progress then follow the derro back to their lair, but as I said, I wanna get my roleplay on!
So suggestions and advice on how to craft a compelling mystery and convince hacknslashy PCs to investigae?
Perhaps poor mother screeches, "My baby! My baby! Where is my baby? Please somebody, help me!" that sort of schtick. She gives off a rumor and thus sets the quest of searching for the kid (or whomever else) before they get experimented on.
For fun, have a guard captain ask for the evil doer to be captured alive, have them too late to save the kid (or whomever else) from experimentation and see what they do.
Or you could give them a somewhat lack luster but drawn out quest and slowly take away poor peeps that were hanging around the town/city, seeing if they notice. If they don't have a tavern owner inquire where George the hobo went. He wasn't there when he went to drop off his daily free food, he's never late. Basically start dropping background subtle clues. When they catch on, have actual clues ready at hand from different NPCs and of course obstacles and encounters to throw into their paths.
On the road to the village they encounter an old woman, who gives them a cryptic warning, "'Ware the village ahead. Evil has come from a cold, dark place, and only true hearts, and brave, can save it now."
If the PCs ask questions, or give indication they might be able to help, she looks them over and says, "I'm not sure you're up to the task. Perhaps killing goblins and the occasional wolf is within your ability, but this might be beyond you. Or maybe not. That is for you to discover, I'm thinking."
Hopefully this cuts a little to their pride as adventurers.
When they arrive, the townsfolk are boarding up windows and hanging garlic above the doors. If there's a cleric or paladin in the party, the villagers are very welcoming, offering free rooms and meals in the inn if they'll help them with "a little problem".
"Seems our priest, good Father Preston, has been called away, and we're in need of some divine aid. Word has come from the old lord's keep, up there in the hills, that he's ill and requires some healing."
"Yeah, the old lord's sick. Maybe you could just go up there and, you know, see if you can help him?"
If asked about the garlic and boarded windows they are evasive or outright lie. "Just local superstition. Some of the silly folk think the baron has a touch o' the old plague... probably nothing to that, or a mild case at worst. Garlic is supposed to ward off plague, you know."
If reluctant, as they should be if not a high level party, the villagers try to encourage them by mentioning Father Preston probably has some healing potions and such in the temple, and surely wouldn't mind if they used them for the baron.
A little information gathering by the PCs could turn up some clues:
After a couple of disappearances, the villagers got the "vampire jitters" and the priest got tired of trying to convince them there was no vampire and went up to the old keep to check it out for them. He didn't return.
The lord of the keep died five years ago this week.
The lord was a retired adventurer who made a fortune exploring the darklands and had some strange ways, including sealing off every cave in the area.
The priest was also an adventurer and companion of the lord when they were both younger. (In fact, you could have every disappearance connected, such as all members of this old adventurer group.)
On his deathbed, the lord made the priest swear he wouldn't bury him in the ground, but would instead seal him in a stone crypt in the highest chamber of the keep.
The villagers think the lord has returned as a vampire.
Of course, the truth is the derro are behind the strange disappearances, including the priest. When the PCs explore the old keep, they find a tunnel coming up into the cellar. They also find the crypt broken open and no body. (Which might get them convinced the lord IS a vampire)
Make a connection between the dead lord and the derro, perhaps some relic he stole from them as an adventurer. Now they've finally located him and find he's dead. But not to be deterred, they have a plan to call him back from the dead, to tell them where their relic is hidden. The old priest is captive and to be used in their ritual.
After they get their relic, they'll leave the undead lord they've created here to prey on the villagers, giving the PCs more reason to stop the derro.
My goodness. Glorious.
For a simpler solution, have the PCs interact with and become friends with a villager in the town.
Have him get snatched by the Derro.
Alternatively, if your PCs are averse to making friends, have the person in question have something the PCs want. Be it information for a larger quest, directions to a massive treasure hoard, or something nicked out of the player's own inventories (but it only works once!), and then get him snatched by the Derro.
I assure you they'll chase the bugger to the ends of the earth to get their s@&$ back.