This summer I will be starting a new campaign as my current Planescape campaign comes to an end. Going to go back to a "mundane" based campaign.
I was thinking of combining the Shackled City Adventure path along with the Githyanki Invasion scenario from Dragon.
I know lots of people have played the final Dungeon adventure with the Lich Queen but has anyone else actually run the invasion?
Also anyone who has run the Shackled City adventure - any changes I should look to make? Any over/under CR monsters for example?
As a twist I was going to throw in a redeemed Illithid as an NPC (ala the example from the book of exalted might)
Thanks!
So I am guessing by the lack of responses no one has run the Gith Invasion campaign yet? I love the Gith and I want to work it into the shackaled city campaign which I am starting in July (will the hardcaover be out by then?).
Lets change the thread somewhat. Any suggestions on incoriparting the invasion with the AP?
A few ideas off the top of my head:
1) One of my players wants to be a Warmaster. This would fit perfectly with the Invasion idea.
2) One of the early adventures will feature a trapped mind-flayer. Assuming the party frees it the good action actually starts the mind flayer onto the road of redemption. When the time is right and the Invasion is in full swing the Illithis returns with a small, elite, group of like minded flayers to help out the players in the defence of the area.
4) Turning the Kopru/Spellweaver ruins into pre-Gith ruins.
5) Somehow linking all the dragons into the invasion plan.
My basic idea would be to run the AP to the end and then the invasion climax with the Lich Queen's Beloved.
Any other ideas on how to incorporate Invasion with the AP?
Thanks.
Solomani,
I also have been considering the possible use of the Gith invasion after completion of the AP. What I'm now struggling with is providing the motivations and backstory for these events; that is, which deity or deities are vying for control of the world and how are they driving the opening of the plane of Carceri in the AP followed by the Gith invasion.
I'm toying with using Vecna and Lolth as the demigod and goddess drivers. When the players have dealt with the gate to Carceri (and possible invasion), and then have dealt with the Gith invasion, they'll be pointed towards a final confrontation with Vecna or Lolth. That would be the crowning culmination of my players' epic careers (and possibly their deaths).
Hurm.
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I was thinking of combining the Shackled City Adventure path along with the Githyanki Invasion scenario from Dragon.
In the game previous to my running the Cauldron campaign, I did in fact start to incorporate the Invasion scenario into a standard Greyhawk campaign.
I have a couple of questions for you though...
1. Do you just plan to replace Adimarchus with Vlaakith, the Lich-Queen?
2. Are you planning on making it so that Caulron will become the main gate to the Prime Material realm you are using, for the Githyanki to invade the world? Maybe the ritual that would have opened a permenant gate to Carceri now opens a permenant gate onto Tu'narath?
3. Are you considering using the adventure from Dungeon #92, Interloopers of Ruun-Khazai? Maybe possibly even making this the location of AP #5 Test of the Smoking Eye?
4. Are you going to continue with the Devil/Demon theme of the AP or will you be changing it to Undead/Red Dragon?
These last three are suggestions...
5. If you keep the CRs for the encounters in the AP, then I would suggest that your players have higher powered stats. I noticed that when I used the standard Greyhawk point buy system, my players had a rough time, they really had to burn their resources to stay alive.
6. Hook-face is a great addition to the AP, especially if you're going to use the Incursion theme. You already have a red dragon that can be tied to the invasion! Also, there is a black dragon lurking around in the 3rd installment. I would suggest changing this to a red dragon, seeing as how this particular dragon loves to breed with new creatures to see what he can create. Possibly even turn this into a hatchery for the Duthka'gith.
7. Make sure that if you have a cleric in the game and you stick with the Devil/Demon aspect, that your cleric has access to some of the new feats presented in the Complete splat books, because as the AP goes on, the cleric does little turning, but with some of those feats, the cleric can re-channel his/her turning into protection and powers for the rest of the party.
That's all I have for now.
Solomani,
I'm toying with using Vecna and Lolth as the demigod and goddess drivers. Hurm.
That's an interesting idea. The game will be run in my own custom world. Cauldron is a city-state which owes nominal allegiance to the nearby human Empire. The Empire is the equivalent of the US today - it is vastly more powerful then any neighbouring and known state in my world. This Empire will be the target of the Gith invasion.
I was just going to work in various Gith related encounters until the invasion gets into full swing which will be around the same time as the Soul Pillars. So essentially I am going to run two different threads in one campaign. Facing Vlakith would come after Admiarchus and would be the crowning achievement that would end the campaign.
Possible additional scenarios would include a Black Hawk Down type of encounter as well as throwing in all the suggested encounters from Dragon. When it gets down and dirty I might have a Seven Samurai style defence happen (as suggested on a different thread). Until the invasion actually hits the Gith will be very much in the background.
If one of my players indeed becomes a warmaster I would have some battles rage around the characters castle. And possibly promote him as protector of Cauldron. I would definitely want to work in the idea that my world is the original home world of the Gith and that their one true god/goddess is somehow trapped in this world and Vlakith is trying to eliminate her (or capture her?) to either eliminate competition or aide in her ascension to god-hood.
As you can tell I am very much still in the planning stage. I am still not sure if I will have the Cagewrights and the Gith directly linked at all. I am leaning towards not having them linked.
1. Do you just plan to replace Adimarchus with Vlaakith, the Lich-Queen?
Currently no. They would both be enemies the players would have to deal with. The Lich-Queen after Adimarchus. This may require the Lich-Queen to actually ascend to divine-ranks. Will have to wait and see.
I am toying with the idea that Admiarchus is actually the goddess of the Gith and that she has been imprisoned eons ago and Vlaakith are manipulating the players to destroy her as well as the Cagewrights. So even tho the players work against the Cagewrights in the end they actually share the same agenda - free Adimarchus who has the best chance to deal with the Lich-Queen as well as uniting the Gith again.
But I would want Adimarchus to be good or atleast neutral. Perhaps a touch insane after being imprisoned for so long but her "heart" is in the right place - she wants to redeem the Gith. Occitpus was her realm but it fell after her imprisonment which is perhaps the result of the manipulation of Illesenine.
In fact I may take a leaf out of Shemeska's book and have Occitpus previously be the third layer of Elysium which fell after eons old manipulation by Illesenine. Perhaps before the Gith were enslaved both Illesnine and Adimarchus (as the power of the Gith) were enemies. And the mind flayer manipulation of Elysium and imprisonment of Adimarchus was the final blow in an age old struggle between these two races. So the enimity between the Gith and the Illithid is even older than the Gith realise.
How I would reconcile the Cagewrights being evil and Admiarchus being good I have no idea. How I would also get around the idea that the players would expect directly help from Adimarchus against Vlaakith I am not sure either. Maybe her god-hood was stolen somehow by Vlaakith and so she is now only human. A powerful human, but human nonetheless.
2. Are you planning on making it so that Caulron will become the main gate to the Prime Material realm you are using, for the Githyanki to invade the world? Maybe the ritual that would have opened a permenant gate to Carceri now opens a permenant gate onto Tu'narath?
No the actual main invasion will occur in the neighbouring state. Like Independence Day the invaders will strike at the most powerful kingdom in my world.
3. Are you considering using the adventure from Dungeon #92, Interloopers of Ruun-Khazai? Maybe possibly even making this the location of AP #5 Test of the Smoking Eye?
Possibly. I need to re-read it first before I decide. I actually quite liked the whole "inherit a layer" thing.
4. Are you going to continue with the Devil/Demon theme of the AP or will you be changing it to Undead/Red Dragon?
I was initially planning on leaving the AP as is and work in the Gith angle in addition to the AP with some crossover.
5. If you keep the CRs for the encounters in the AP, then I would suggest that your players have higher powered stats. I noticed that when I used the standard Greyhawk point buy system, my players had a rough time, they really had to burn their resources to stay alive.
I am having my players use the 4d6 method with the option to re-roll the whole set if they choose. This system usually leads to higher stats which is fine by me. Since I am known as a "killer DM" (I prefer the term Gygaxian ;) this will help them.
6. Hook-face is a great addition to the AP, especially if you're going to use the Incursion theme. You already have a red dragon that can be tied to the invasion! Also, there is a black dragon lurking around in the 3rd installment. I would suggest changing this to a red dragon, seeing as how this particular dragon loves to breed with new creatures to see what he can create. Possibly even turn this into a hatchery for the Duthka'gith.
I was going to change Dhorlet into Gottord (unless Gottord gets killed then Dhorlet is another red). The idea of making that area a hatchery is great. Will use that!
7. Make sure that if you have a cleric in the game and you stick with the Devil/Demon aspect, that your cleric has access to some of the new feats presented in the Complete splat books, because as the AP goes on, the cleric does little turning, but with some of those feats, the cleric can re-channel his/her turning into protection and powers for the rest of the party.
Currently I have 6 players - 1 Cleric, 1 Wizard, 2 Fighters and 2 rangers. I will take your suggestion to heart and let the cleric know about the new feats in Complete Divine. Thanks for the ideas and feedback.
It seems you two are really going to change the guts of the AP. While my plan was to leave the AP mostly intact but add the Gith incursion ideas like your #6 suggestion.
Hey Solomani,
That's a cool idea. I started thinking along those lines myself recently, for a completely different reason. One of my PC's is an illumian (from Races of Destiny), with plans on becoming a Shadow Sentinel. Illumians hate the githyanki for destroying a great library of theirs in the Astral Plane, and I have considered having Vlaakith planning to assault their stronghold in the Plane of Shadow as well. I would then want to use some intersperse some gith encounters throughout the AP as well.
However, several other PCs have a celestial bent (aasimar, half-celestial, etc), so I will probably keep most of the fiendish aspects of the AP intact.
I had another idea after reading an old dungeon adventure "into the silvery realm". You would definetly want to work this advenutre into the story arch. Reaplace Storm (the red in Into the Silvery Realm) with Gottord or Dhorlet.
Into the Silver Realm revolves around a planned invasion of Faerun by the Githyanki. In particualr the permenant portals they are setting up.
You could have a partially built portal near Dhorlet as well as a hatchery.