| Arrius |
It's very unsatisfying to purchase or run an AP and have it stay for years, only for the whole experience be destroyed when even one player jumps ship. In many cases, the character concepts lose steam and value after Book 2 or 3.
So what if AP chapters can be played as separate modules? Below are a few guidelines for integration and resolution of adventures.
For example: Players starting Book 3 of CotCT will start out as quarantined survivors in Old Korvosa.
Players starting Book 6 of CotCT will arrive at Korvosa under high-level siege and revolt, without having to go through the process of the queen's descent into madness.
Play by Post is also a concern that relies heavily on the adventure's structure. Having the below as guidelines can excise certain encounters that slog down gameplay—as some encounters are more important than others.
CotCT Book 1
Spoiler:
Integration: Integration requires only establishing Gaedren Lamm in the heroes' backstories or as a local menace (such as witnessing orphans pickpocketing and returning for a possible beating for pickpocketing/begging too little), and establishing the rising spirit of anarchy and instability in Korvosa.
Resolution:
Ending Book
Execution of Triana as the supposed assassin of the king. There is no scripted rescue of the artist. Questions are asked and silence is the answer, and Korvosa continues to be ruled by an inexperienced monarch who relies far too much on Chelish (Westcrown) advisors, but anarchy and civil war are averted.
Continuing AP
Execution is averted and Triana is rescued, paving the way for book 2.
Resolution:
Ending Book
Execution of Triana as the supposed assassin of the king. There is no scripted rescue of the artist. Questions are asked and silence is the answer, and Korvosa continues to be ruled by an inexperienced monarch who relies far too much on Chelish (Westcrown) advisors, but anarchy and civil war are averted.
Continuing AP
Execution is averted and Triana is rescued, paving the way for book 2.
CotCT Book 2
Spoiler:
Integration: Running from Book 2 shifts the story to a fight-the-plague story.
Continuing from Book 1: Play the adventure as normal
Starting from Book 2: Korvosa is a city ruled by a spoiled queen managing a city at the brink of anarchy. As occasional riots set parts of the city to the flame are answered with a brutal crackdown, a silent Nidalese ship sails into harbor in the dead of night, only to be sunken by the guard.
Days later, a terrible plague appears, and wrestles with the wounded city to make it a grave.
Resolution:
Ending Book
Andasain, the Queen's Physicians and the good doctor, and the vampire Ramoska are revealed to have engineered a conspiracy to kill thousands of Korvosans to further the interests of their factions. The cult of Urgoatha sacrifices the city as dedication, the queen's physicians and the good doctor are experimenting with disease to ethnically cleanse the city, and the vampire Ramoska experiments to manipulate blood to cure vampirism. These forces are targeted by the crown with a brutal crackdown, and the plague ends.
Continuing AP
All goes as planned, and move on to book 3.
Continuing from Book 1: Play the adventure as normal
Starting from Book 2: Korvosa is a city ruled by a spoiled queen managing a city at the brink of anarchy. As occasional riots set parts of the city to the flame are answered with a brutal crackdown, a silent Nidalese ship sails into harbor in the dead of night, only to be sunken by the guard.
Days later, a terrible plague appears, and wrestles with the wounded city to make it a grave.
Resolution:
Ending Book
Andasain, the Queen's Physicians and the good doctor, and the vampire Ramoska are revealed to have engineered a conspiracy to kill thousands of Korvosans to further the interests of their factions. The cult of Urgoatha sacrifices the city as dedication, the queen's physicians and the good doctor are experimenting with disease to ethnically cleanse the city, and the vampire Ramoska experiments to manipulate blood to cure vampirism. These forces are targeted by the crown with a brutal crackdown, and the plague ends.
Continuing AP
All goes as planned, and move on to book 3.
CotCT Book 3
Spoiler:
Integration: Running Book 3 shifts the focus from a tyrannical queen to a political intrigue story.
Continuing from Book 2: Play the adventure as normal.
Starting from Book 3:
Korvosa, recovering from a terrible plague, continues to quarantine the region of Old Korvosa, the seat of the old nobility of the city, House Arkonas. In response to an assassination attempt on the Queen, she decided to extend the quarentine and tight her grip on the city. The senechal of Castle Korvosa, believed to have died recently from the plague, surfaced in Old Korvosa, the seat of power of House Arkonas.
As Old Korvosa struggles in a war between House Arkonas, the self-proclaimed Emperor of Old Korvosa, and Queen Ileosa's quarantine, a chance for heroism presents itself. Why did the senechal of House Arabasti, the rulers of Korvosa escape to Old Korvosa? Why does the queen continue to quarantine the old city? Are the rumors true that House Arkonas are behind the assassination attempt on Queen Ileosa, and if so, to what end?
In this run, Queen Ileosa seems like a cruel yet sensible monarch, pragmatically allowing her enemies to waste one another as she readies herself to defeat the remaining force in Old Korvosa to bring it to heel. The true extent of her evil is revealed by Neolandus, who reveals both parties' intents (Arkonas intending to usurp Korvosa and replace Ileosa with a shapeshifter, and Ileosa using dark relics to control Korvosa).
The Crown of Fangs is diminished as a plot point, and is not an artifact that will bring about a dragon, but a symbol of Queen Ileosa's tyrannical leanings that must be clipped in the bud.
Resolution:
Ending Book
Old Korvosa is relieved from the blockade as Ileosa ultimately succeeds. The Arkonas' secret is either safe or revealed after Neolandus and Vencarlo are saved. Either are detailed below.
• Safe secret? The Arkonas perform damage control, presenting a scapegoat and hunkering down to avoid having the family uprooted.
• Revealed? The Arkonas kill those who know of the secret until it is known by too many people. In that case, Ileosa has the excuse she needs to strip them of all their holdings, wealth, and land. The Arkonas' days in Korvosa are numbered, and a great slaughter will take place should the Arkonas refuse to submit and yield or escape Korvosa.
Neolandus and Vencarlo do not give Ileosa a chance to celebrate the destruction of the Arkonas; as she uproots them and exhausts herself, the city and the nobility rise with Neolandus to put a halt at a queen who is amassing far too much power. Depending on how much pieces of evidence the heroes gathered in Book 3, the transfer of power can be easy (with Ileosa's supporters leaving her and her enemies rapidly closing around her), difficult (with the war being mostly decided but costly, ending with Ileosa's head on a spike), or impossible (Ileosa's supporters are too great, and she crushes the rebellion).
Continuing AP
All goes as planned, and move to book 4.
Continuing from Book 2: Play the adventure as normal.
Starting from Book 3:
Korvosa, recovering from a terrible plague, continues to quarantine the region of Old Korvosa, the seat of the old nobility of the city, House Arkonas. In response to an assassination attempt on the Queen, she decided to extend the quarentine and tight her grip on the city. The senechal of Castle Korvosa, believed to have died recently from the plague, surfaced in Old Korvosa, the seat of power of House Arkonas.
As Old Korvosa struggles in a war between House Arkonas, the self-proclaimed Emperor of Old Korvosa, and Queen Ileosa's quarantine, a chance for heroism presents itself. Why did the senechal of House Arabasti, the rulers of Korvosa escape to Old Korvosa? Why does the queen continue to quarantine the old city? Are the rumors true that House Arkonas are behind the assassination attempt on Queen Ileosa, and if so, to what end?
In this run, Queen Ileosa seems like a cruel yet sensible monarch, pragmatically allowing her enemies to waste one another as she readies herself to defeat the remaining force in Old Korvosa to bring it to heel. The true extent of her evil is revealed by Neolandus, who reveals both parties' intents (Arkonas intending to usurp Korvosa and replace Ileosa with a shapeshifter, and Ileosa using dark relics to control Korvosa).
The Crown of Fangs is diminished as a plot point, and is not an artifact that will bring about a dragon, but a symbol of Queen Ileosa's tyrannical leanings that must be clipped in the bud.
Resolution:
Ending Book
Old Korvosa is relieved from the blockade as Ileosa ultimately succeeds. The Arkonas' secret is either safe or revealed after Neolandus and Vencarlo are saved. Either are detailed below.
• Safe secret? The Arkonas perform damage control, presenting a scapegoat and hunkering down to avoid having the family uprooted.
• Revealed? The Arkonas kill those who know of the secret until it is known by too many people. In that case, Ileosa has the excuse she needs to strip them of all their holdings, wealth, and land. The Arkonas' days in Korvosa are numbered, and a great slaughter will take place should the Arkonas refuse to submit and yield or escape Korvosa.
Neolandus and Vencarlo do not give Ileosa a chance to celebrate the destruction of the Arkonas; as she uproots them and exhausts herself, the city and the nobility rise with Neolandus to put a halt at a queen who is amassing far too much power. Depending on how much pieces of evidence the heroes gathered in Book 3, the transfer of power can be easy (with Ileosa's supporters leaving her and her enemies rapidly closing around her), difficult (with the war being mostly decided but costly, ending with Ileosa's head on a spike), or impossible (Ileosa's supporters are too great, and she crushes the rebellion).
Continuing AP
All goes as planned, and move to book 4.
CotCT Book 4
Spoiler:
Integration: Book 4 is focused away from Korvosa, which affects integration.
Continuing from Book 3: Play the adventure as normal. If half integration, emphasize Scream's paintings, the Crown of Fangs, and the Red Mantis' role in Book 3.
Starting from Book 4:
Running Book 4 can be done by starting in Korvosa and leaving, or the lands beyond the walls begin suffering fallout from the events in Korvosa. The massacre in Old Korvosa, reports of a rebellion crushed by a cursed tyrannical queen, and the winds of a legend that heralded events such as this. There are two ways to integrate as a standalone adventure.
• Book 4 starts well in the outlying regions through a Shoanti and Varisian point of view, as the legends of shamans speaking of the Azure Tyrant rising and puppeting the Crimson Queen. Neolandus, Vencarlo, and Triana are first met in Blackbird Ranch as representatives of the Shoanti clans who wish to speak to Korvosan rebels. The heroes (if non-Shoanti) must go through the Trials of Respect. Shoanti characters may also go through them to prove worthy to the other clans that they can represent their interests, ready them for the trails to come, bless them, and help non-Shoanti to bond with them over the trials.
• Book 4 starts with heroes who have lost the rebellion, awed and terrified of Ileosa's unexplainable power. Their partners in rebellion, Neolandus, Vencarlo, and the supposed assassin Triana meet in the ranch to discuss the rebellion and how the answer must be understanding the queen--once a spoiled brat, now a cruel dictator.
Resolution:
Ending Book
Armed with a secret of the Crown of Fangs, the players are approached by the echo of the first guardian of the Crown of Fangs, the hero that once fought Kazavon. He entreats the heroes to aid him in rekindling the wards that once kept the fangs' power in check to undo the power that now surges from Ileosa and keeps her immortal, and keeps her soldiers and retainers magically loyal.
The embers of rebellion are fanned into a flame. Fueled with Shoanti outriders, the rebellion takes place within and without Korvosa. The churches and nobles of the city decide where their loyalties lie, and the queen is subject to another failed assassination attempt. Using sympathy magic and the talents of the Brotherhood of Bones, the players can choose to sneak into Castle Korvosa with the Seneschal Neolandus and a group of talented infiltrators and evoke the Shoanti spirits that once guarded and suppressed the Crown of Fangs' power. Without it, Ileosa is no longer immortal, and can be slain in her throne room in a normal encounter as infighting and suspicions soon strip the queen of all backers.
Continuing AP
All goes as planned, and move to book 5.
Continuing from Book 3: Play the adventure as normal. If half integration, emphasize Scream's paintings, the Crown of Fangs, and the Red Mantis' role in Book 3.
Starting from Book 4:
Running Book 4 can be done by starting in Korvosa and leaving, or the lands beyond the walls begin suffering fallout from the events in Korvosa. The massacre in Old Korvosa, reports of a rebellion crushed by a cursed tyrannical queen, and the winds of a legend that heralded events such as this. There are two ways to integrate as a standalone adventure.
• Book 4 starts well in the outlying regions through a Shoanti and Varisian point of view, as the legends of shamans speaking of the Azure Tyrant rising and puppeting the Crimson Queen. Neolandus, Vencarlo, and Triana are first met in Blackbird Ranch as representatives of the Shoanti clans who wish to speak to Korvosan rebels. The heroes (if non-Shoanti) must go through the Trials of Respect. Shoanti characters may also go through them to prove worthy to the other clans that they can represent their interests, ready them for the trails to come, bless them, and help non-Shoanti to bond with them over the trials.
• Book 4 starts with heroes who have lost the rebellion, awed and terrified of Ileosa's unexplainable power. Their partners in rebellion, Neolandus, Vencarlo, and the supposed assassin Triana meet in the ranch to discuss the rebellion and how the answer must be understanding the queen--once a spoiled brat, now a cruel dictator.
Resolution:
Ending Book
Armed with a secret of the Crown of Fangs, the players are approached by the echo of the first guardian of the Crown of Fangs, the hero that once fought Kazavon. He entreats the heroes to aid him in rekindling the wards that once kept the fangs' power in check to undo the power that now surges from Ileosa and keeps her immortal, and keeps her soldiers and retainers magically loyal.
The embers of rebellion are fanned into a flame. Fueled with Shoanti outriders, the rebellion takes place within and without Korvosa. The churches and nobles of the city decide where their loyalties lie, and the queen is subject to another failed assassination attempt. Using sympathy magic and the talents of the Brotherhood of Bones, the players can choose to sneak into Castle Korvosa with the Seneschal Neolandus and a group of talented infiltrators and evoke the Shoanti spirits that once guarded and suppressed the Crown of Fangs' power. Without it, Ileosa is no longer immortal, and can be slain in her throne room in a normal encounter as infighting and suspicions soon strip the queen of all backers.
Continuing AP
All goes as planned, and move to book 5.
CotCT Book 5
Spoiler:
Integration: Book 5 is the an easy adventure to separate from the AP.
Continuing from Book 4: Play the adventure as normal. If half integration, emphasize Scream's Paintings, the Crown of Fangs, the Brotherhood of Bones, and the Shoanti legend of Kazavon.
Starting from Book 5:
Running book 5 can be done by setting out to Scarwall from Varisia or playing it entirely from scratch (Lastwall, Ustalav, or Mendev beyond), or the west (Varisia or Nidal).
• Varisia: The possibility of a backdoor to undo Queen Ileosa's gateway to power can be investigated instead by spirits within the Karvosan pyramid; Castle Scarwall is the origin of the Crown of Fangs, and if any solution exists, it is there.
• Lastwall/Mendev: Lifting the curse on Castle Scarwall has always been an ambition of the Knights of Lastwall, as is recovering Serithal. Due to the unexplained surge in undead or demonic activity lately, the artifact will prove useful, and lifting the curse will likely help make Scarwall a foreward base for Ustalav or Lastwall into the Hold of Belkzen.
• Ustalav: A long-lost descendent claims Scarwall as the castle of his forefathers, and starts an expedition to lift the curse, avenge his house, and reclaim the castle from evil.
• Nidal: The fact that the castle stands on a point of a Startower is not forgotten. The castle has fallen to evil--but is not under Zon-Kuthon's sway. A holy (or unholy) expedition to reclaim the tower and establish a bridge through the shadow realm will likely bring great glory to the pious Kuthite.
• Varisia: The fact that the castle stands on a point of a Startower is not forgotten. The castle has the mark of Zon-Kuthon, and has great relics of his eternal enemy Desna. Should the Desnans cleanse the tower and claim it for their goddess, it will be repurposed as a beacon of light in the shadows of the Hold.
• Adventurers: The fact that Castle Scarwall holds great evil is a beacon for those who will want to lift such a curse on the land. Humans to orcs may want to undo the curse and claim the riches within.
Resolution:
Ending Book
The easiest book after Book 1 to wrap up. The castle is purified and the heroes move on. If half integrated, the echo of the first guardian (see above) is joined with the other heroes that first defeated Kazavon. The resolution for Book 4 takes place at a higher tier and at higher level.
Continuing AP
All goes as planned, and move to book 6, with the necessary changes for less integration.
Continuing from Book 4: Play the adventure as normal. If half integration, emphasize Scream's Paintings, the Crown of Fangs, the Brotherhood of Bones, and the Shoanti legend of Kazavon.
Starting from Book 5:
Running book 5 can be done by setting out to Scarwall from Varisia or playing it entirely from scratch (Lastwall, Ustalav, or Mendev beyond), or the west (Varisia or Nidal).
• Varisia: The possibility of a backdoor to undo Queen Ileosa's gateway to power can be investigated instead by spirits within the Karvosan pyramid; Castle Scarwall is the origin of the Crown of Fangs, and if any solution exists, it is there.
• Lastwall/Mendev: Lifting the curse on Castle Scarwall has always been an ambition of the Knights of Lastwall, as is recovering Serithal. Due to the unexplained surge in undead or demonic activity lately, the artifact will prove useful, and lifting the curse will likely help make Scarwall a foreward base for Ustalav or Lastwall into the Hold of Belkzen.
• Ustalav: A long-lost descendent claims Scarwall as the castle of his forefathers, and starts an expedition to lift the curse, avenge his house, and reclaim the castle from evil.
• Nidal: The fact that the castle stands on a point of a Startower is not forgotten. The castle has fallen to evil--but is not under Zon-Kuthon's sway. A holy (or unholy) expedition to reclaim the tower and establish a bridge through the shadow realm will likely bring great glory to the pious Kuthite.
• Varisia: The fact that the castle stands on a point of a Startower is not forgotten. The castle has the mark of Zon-Kuthon, and has great relics of his eternal enemy Desna. Should the Desnans cleanse the tower and claim it for their goddess, it will be repurposed as a beacon of light in the shadows of the Hold.
• Adventurers: The fact that Castle Scarwall holds great evil is a beacon for those who will want to lift such a curse on the land. Humans to orcs may want to undo the curse and claim the riches within.
Resolution:
Ending Book
The easiest book after Book 1 to wrap up. The castle is purified and the heroes move on. If half integrated, the echo of the first guardian (see above) is joined with the other heroes that first defeated Kazavon. The resolution for Book 4 takes place at a higher tier and at higher level.
Continuing AP
All goes as planned, and move to book 6, with the necessary changes for less integration.
CotCT Book 6
Spoiler:
Integration: Book 6 focuses on Ileosa's last mechanisms for immortality and the crumbling of the kingdom as it was once known. It can be relatively modular when being applied, as the rebellion events do not strictly require playing the previous books, and can be addressed either internally or externally (even by passing or plane-hopping adventurers).
Continuing from Book 5: Play the adventure as normal. If half integration, emphasize the Crown of Fangs, the Shoanti legend of Kazavon, and the breakup of civilization in Korvosa.
Starting from Book 6:
Running book 6 can be done either by witnessing the rise of the Queen internally, or by taking advantage of her insanity externally:
• Internally: Witnessing the rise of the queen and her evil could have ended with the heroes rebellion defeated and them overpowered, locked into jails or otherwise overwhelmed. Being caught unawares, betrayed by friends or family, or even tricked by a queen they once served and trusted and being discarded into the cells. Internal heroes have the benefit of the background events of the previous books, although the instigators of the previous events can be dead, away, or even hated rivals they must help to overthrow a mad queen.
• Rebellion: Internal important persons can (once escaping from the cells either via starting event or by fighting their way out) seek out the important people in the rebellion and pledging conditional or unconditional support.
• Externally: Magnimar, the Shoanti, and pretenders to the throne (such as cadet nobles of the Arabasti house) may take advantage of Ileosa's weakening grip on the city to launch an invasion to Korvosa, with the cassus belli being to overthrow a mad queen to gain the sympathy and aid of the oppressed populace within. External foes may send agents and selected persons to weaken Ileosa's grip on the city by supporting the rebels, but their true designs will appear only in the end.
Invasion: Once the agents secure an understanding with the rebels that they cannot overthrow the queen on their own, they can initiate an invasion to overthrow the queen. Battles will take place off-screen in the bay, coast, and streets of the city, as the agents make use of the rebel's icons and symbols to retain legitimacy against a possibly-difficult war of 'liberation', which the queen's supporters call an invasion.
Resolution:
Ending Book
The potential endings for Book 6 are numerous even if there is no integration, let alone the multitudes of variance in possible outcomes. All endings follow similar patterns, save invasion.
Invasion: Korvosa has it's pride. Soon after the invasion, there is a political effort to seceed from Magnimar and regain independence, led by the rebels and heroes of yesterday.
Continuing AP
See Continuing the Adventure on the final book.
Continuing from Book 5: Play the adventure as normal. If half integration, emphasize the Crown of Fangs, the Shoanti legend of Kazavon, and the breakup of civilization in Korvosa.
Starting from Book 6:
Running book 6 can be done either by witnessing the rise of the Queen internally, or by taking advantage of her insanity externally:
• Internally: Witnessing the rise of the queen and her evil could have ended with the heroes rebellion defeated and them overpowered, locked into jails or otherwise overwhelmed. Being caught unawares, betrayed by friends or family, or even tricked by a queen they once served and trusted and being discarded into the cells. Internal heroes have the benefit of the background events of the previous books, although the instigators of the previous events can be dead, away, or even hated rivals they must help to overthrow a mad queen.
• Rebellion: Internal important persons can (once escaping from the cells either via starting event or by fighting their way out) seek out the important people in the rebellion and pledging conditional or unconditional support.
• Externally: Magnimar, the Shoanti, and pretenders to the throne (such as cadet nobles of the Arabasti house) may take advantage of Ileosa's weakening grip on the city to launch an invasion to Korvosa, with the cassus belli being to overthrow a mad queen to gain the sympathy and aid of the oppressed populace within. External foes may send agents and selected persons to weaken Ileosa's grip on the city by supporting the rebels, but their true designs will appear only in the end.
Invasion: Once the agents secure an understanding with the rebels that they cannot overthrow the queen on their own, they can initiate an invasion to overthrow the queen. Battles will take place off-screen in the bay, coast, and streets of the city, as the agents make use of the rebel's icons and symbols to retain legitimacy against a possibly-difficult war of 'liberation', which the queen's supporters call an invasion.
Resolution:
Ending Book
The potential endings for Book 6 are numerous even if there is no integration, let alone the multitudes of variance in possible outcomes. All endings follow similar patterns, save invasion.
Invasion: Korvosa has it's pride. Soon after the invasion, there is a political effort to seceed from Magnimar and regain independence, led by the rebels and heroes of yesterday.
Continuing AP
See Continuing the Adventure on the final book.
| Lanathar |
Thanks for this.
I am sure I asked something similar with regards to all APs in the General AP section some time ago so this is very useful. Have you considered the same modular approach for any of the other APs by chance?
I am running a group through Price of Immortality and looking ahead for what to do if they survive and hit Level 7.
I probably will not transition into this but do like the idea of running Scarwall as a stand alone once they hit that level as a quest for a powerful holy weapon as that would be a useful hook against a variety of possible final enemies