Planescape has been my favourite setting ever since Dragonlance stopped being my favourite setting ever (I still love Dragonlance a lot, but after I stumbled upon Planescape somewhere around 1997, it was love at first sight). However, save for a couple of short AD&D campaigns in the late 90's, I've never fully devoted a campaign to it. Sure, I almost always include some Planescape in every campaign I run, what with some walkabouts through Elemental Earth and the occasional genasi visitor (or war for the control of Osirion with animated sphinxes wrestling each other. You know, the usual).
That is about to change in a couple of weeks, when our new Pathfinder campaign begins. We recently finished our second PF campaign (they tend to be pretty long. This one lasted almost two years, the one prior lasted over two years), and I decided it was time to get barmy.
So, after about a month of preparation and PC building, I am presented with 6 15th level characters who, after years of adventuring and world-hopping, decided it was about time they put their skills towards more exclusive endeavours and set up shop in the Market Ward of Sigil, selling their capabilities to the highest bidder.
The plan is for a more modular campaign than our previous ones; there's still going to be an overarching plot (involving, of course, yugoloths), but the day-to-day adventuring will take place in mostly self-contained stories. That was precisely why I chose this opportunity to use Planescape, since visiting all them barmy places and realms is one of my favourite things about it. It was also a good pretext to allow the entire Advanced Races Guide (though the party ended up pretty mundane in overall, with a Human Rogue, a Human Celestial Sorcerer, a Human Red Dragon Sorcerer, a Half-Elf Fighter/Wizard/Arcane Archer, an Aasimar Cleric, and a Oread Fighter which we rebranded as Earth Genasi, since the word "oread" sound very weird in our native language).
Just thought I'd share it, since I'm very excited to finally run a fully Planescape campaign, almost 15 years since the last time I did it. Starting at such a high level will be challenging, but an entertaining one nonetheless.
This should be entertaining. Watching.
I wish I were there. That seems like the perfect time to play a Vampire Centaur Keyboard-Bard, or a Cybernetic Gunslinger, or an Elf whose legs are really just freaky arms.
Or something wild.
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A Planescape game based out of Sigil is one of those things I'd really love to do someday. I like the idea of it being fairly episodic with relatively independent episodes but with some overall plot/theme to each "season" of the campaign.
Definitely lends itself to adventure 1 has characters A, B and C searching for a lost artifact in the Abyss, adventure 2 with B, C, D and E escorting a diplomatic mission to a rendezvous point in the Outlands, adventure 3 a murder mystery in Sigil with all of the characters, etc.
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A Planescape game based out of Sigil is one of those things I'd really love to do someday. I like the idea of it being fairly episodic with relatively independent episodes but with some overall plot/theme to each "season" of the campaign.
Definitely lends itself to adventure 1 has characters A, B and C searching for a lost artifact in the Abyss, adventure 2 with B, C, D and E escorting a diplomatic mission to a rendezvous point in the Outlands, adventure 3 a murder mystery in Sigil with all of the characters, etc.
See, all the players would have to do is set up a private eye agency, or a guard company, or whatever, or maybe something that's all of that, and boom, you've got a long string of adventure opportunities.
See, all the players would have to do is set up a private eye agency, or a guard company, or whatever, or maybe something that's all of that, and boom, you've got a long string of adventure opportunities.
Well, that's pretty much what they created: The Brotherhood of the Impossible, a sort of chartered adventuring company set to tackle anything thrown at them for the proper price.
The background story ends with an episodic climax just before the start of the campaign. After having fought and travelled and plotted and endured for several years, the PCs suddenly found themselves in a sort of "Well... now what?" situation, which eventually led to the creation of their company.
Asides from the party, they have 45 employees of various levels, an old run-down hotel in the Market Ward they managed to refit into their HQs thanks to the help of a mysterious patron (who's getting revealed during the first session) and just enough budget left to get things moving.
Here are the floorplans for their HQs, which I drew based on their description (except the Otyugh Pit, which was a generous gift from me).
Their plan is to turn the whole thing into a profitable series of business ventures. My plan is to have them endure a series of progressively more problematic adventures, some of them including stuff from our older campaigns for the added nostalgia factor (whenever we end a campaign, I do an epilogue of each PC and every mayor NPCs, detailing what happened to them. The players love it and I hope to exploit some of that for this campaign bringing PCs and NPCs both loved and hated, thanks to the world-hopping capabilities of Planescape).
Time for an update:
So far, we've had 3 sessions, and it's all going great. One of the first tasks the players had was to design the 45 NPCs working for them. I told them they were getting 3 level-8s "very loyal companions from your early travels", and then a host of hirelings split between 6 level-4s, 12 level-2s, and 24 level-1s. I had originally intended to just ask them details about the 3 level 8s, but they got carried away and created background stories for all 45 of them.
So when the first session comes, I get handed this 20-page booklet filled with stories. Some of the highlights I found most amusing:
Tuk-Tuk Mandingo, Gnoll Philosopher and Theologian, in charge of advising the Brotherhood on maters of religio and the factions. Gets frustrated because he can only speak in barks and no one takes his discourses seriously.
Achmed Al'Azhar, Human Spymaster in charge of company security. Has everyone, even the PCs, blacklisted. Spends his nights staring at the PCs while they sleep, right in front of their noses. He is always behind the closest curtain. The party has to constantly keep him from "taking care of the guests".
Isabella, Charming and Voluptuous Lady. Her job is showing up with dates everytime someone says "Bring the dates!".
Roberto, Charming and Muscular Man. Male equivalent of Isabella, pressured by the female player of the group. Basically a Fabio who speaks like Antonio Banderas.
Tiny Tim, Crippled 8-year olf kid used to con wealthy men with a heart.
Tiny Molly, Crippled 34 year-old lady magically transmuted into an 8-year old used in tandem with Tiny Tim when just one kid isn't convincing enough.
Naria D'Myr, "Rescued" Mermaid. Currently used as decoration for the lab's aquarium.
Olarr, Water Elemental "laundry expert". Believes he's actually insulting everyone by "throwing his fluids" all over their clothes, sure that the party doesn't know he's living inside the laundry room. Party keeps him convinced of that in order to save in personnel costs.
"That Guy, what was his name again...?". Random fellow, no one knows his name, and when trying to remember his face everyone draws blank. In charge of "being there" whenever someone needs to ask the time of the day or pick up a banana peel.
Giacomo della Foresta, Accomplished Artist -Allegedly-. One of the various artists, performers, and entertainers kept by the Brotherhood, Giacomo was originally brought in to paint the great accomplishments of the PCs. Nowadays, however, he's often seen trying to use frogs as paintbrushes or sculpting potatoes into the shape of other potatoes.
Tarbolin, Elven Violinist. Prances and frolicks around the Brotherhood's HQ adding music to everything; he's essentially the party's BGM. It has been proven that it is physically impossible to eat pasta by candelight anywhere within a 5-mile radius of him without Tarbolin suddenly materializing next to the table with a heart-rending violin solo.
Gruk the Wonderful, Orc Bard and Performance Stomach Singer. He basically justs screams. Double-tags as gate guard. Constantly at odds with Tarbolin, the Elven Violinist.
One-Eyed Willy, Ogre Bartender and Alchemist. In charge of tending the Brotherhood's watering hole and creating unusual concoctions. Hired because he used to be a one-eyed bartender/retired fighter who handed over quests to new adventurers who gathered at bars. He actually made a succesful career out of that before the PCs brought him to Sigil. Has a soft spot for Tarbolins violin solos and likes cheesy romantic novels.
Bo'anna, Halfling Explorer and Translator. Has been to every jungle the party can name, and consequently knows a bunch of very specific tribal languages. Also has almost every venereal disease the PCs can think of. Possibly a cannibal.
Isabella, Charming and Voluptuous Lady. Her job is showing up with dates everytime someone says "Bring the dates!".
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Had lots of fun with an episodic planescape game before.
I GMed for three small groups of players (living in different towns or unable to all play on the same days) with interlacing stories, all contributing to the same metaplot. Things got exciting when characters really became aware of each others, and groups would communicate both in-game and out-of game.
It was cool but eventually became too heavy for me to DM, as anyone could predict (except for me apparently).