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I come to the boards seeking all of the wisdom you can possibly give in what has turned out to be the most absolutley messed up twist I think could have happened in my campaign. Essentially, last night one of my player's managed to snag a free ride to the Fiery Sanctum much earlier than planned for.
Here's some background.
My players are currently at the tail end of 7th level at the end of Zenith Trajectory. They managed to capture Zenith and bring him back to Cauldron to be delivered to his father. However, Vhalantru has informed them that Davkid's health has turned for the worse and has returned to his clan's hold south of the city for care. The PC's insist on returning Zenith themselves, and eventually Vhalantru relents. The party, still tired from the days journey to return to Cauldron decides to rest for the night in the Malachite fortress (which the dwarven cleric has been in the process of converting to a dwarven temple/compound).
Needless to say, during the night, Kravichak attacks in order to steal away Zenith. Here's where things get a bit muddy. Since, during the original battle with Zenith, the party never ended up using See Invisible or Purge Invisibility to counter the invisible stalker, they never saw the Carcerian Sign.
The wizard now has a wand of See Invisible so I wanted to make sure that the player's caught a glimpse of it before Zenith is taken. I personally think this is an important plot point, so I decided to stretch out the battle with Kravichak to ensure this happens. So I decided that Kravichak in his insane glory, would toy with the PC's a bit, and not just teleport in and out in 2 rounds.
First he disintegrates the manacles holding Zenith, The two PC's on watch try to stop the invisible assailant, but are not being very effective. By this time the rest of the party, who had been sleeping, awaken to the sound of his insane laughter and battle, The holy warrior had grabbed Zenith and was running with him, but Kravichak just teleported after them. The wizard used the want and could see invisible, and finally spotted the sign on Zenith's face. Kravichak decided to cast baleful polymorph on the holy warrior, who failed the save and was turned into a toad. Luckily he makes the 2nd will save so he still retains his mind. So what does he do?
He crawls into Zenith's clothing.
So now the holy warrior (as a toad) is tucked away in Zenith's clothes, The rest of the party is trying to stop the invisible assailant. Kravichak casts another baleful polymorph on the wizard turning him into a monkey (he failed the 2nd will save as well).The dwarf cleric, still convinced that Zenith is a corrupt monster not deserving of mercy, decides to Coup de gras the unconsious dwarf. He succeeds and beheads Zenith. By this time Kravichak catches up and decides to get what he came for, grabs the body and teleports away.
See the problem? So now the party's holy warrior (minus his gear and in toad form) has just been taken to the fiery sanctum at 7th level...
So now what do I do? I'm looking for suggestions. I don't want to simply counter the player's tactic by simply saying "oh you didn't get teleported" or "you fell out of Zenith's clothes", Nor do I simply want to hand-wave it away and simply tell him to create a new PC since his current one is almost guaranteed to be killed.
So I want to do something interesting. How do I turn this to my advantage?
Also, a little more info on the character in question. The holy warrior worships wee-jas, but has never been a strict follower of the faith. He was always on the outs with the traditional church in Cauldron for his unorthodox views. And now he's about five feet from Embril. I would like to take advantage of this.
This was the most unexpected thing a player could have done, but also one of the most exciting. So if anyone has any suggestions on how I could deal with this, or make use of it in campaign, let me know.
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This gave me a warm & fuzzy flashback to that episode of Zogonia, where Kev climbed inside the lich's skull and disrupted his spells...what a hoot.
I don't have Kravichak's stats to hand, but shouldn't the polymorph spells have constituted an attack, thus making him visible? Obviously, IMPROVED invisibility would let him get away with this...
As for Mr Toad, my advice is run with it. Don't give the player any inkling that his previous PC is alive or dead. Give him the option of running one of the exisiting friendly NPCs until the toad's fate has been verified.
I prefer this approach in general for several reasons:-
1)It's less work; the character is already statted out, and you don't have to wait around for the player. A 1st-3rd level character is no big deal, but at higher levels, the sheer range of options causes players to dither around ,holding up play while they check things with you.
2)The new character will not necessarily be min-maxed, or have the benefits of abused player-knowledge. You know the signs; a new wizard about to face undead, who has never learned a mind-affecting spell, a ranger with exactly the right favoured enemy, etc.
3) It sidesteps the problem of PC parties gaining extra gear with each new recruit, thus benefitting from losing members.
4) It's more realistic that the various power groups would actually take an interest in events and try to help. I know the PCs are the heroes, but so often, when I'm listening to some NPC reeling off a load of flavour text, I can't help thinking "If this task is SO important, why don't you get off your fat arse and do it, instead of trusting a bunch of strangers?". I remember being very frustrated playing Fate of Istus, that the monarchs and churches seemed not to give a rat's ass about aiding us in any way.
5) This encourages PCs to actually MAKE FRIENDS and CONTACTS, which enhances the storyline and gives those characters with social skills a pat on the back. If the PCs act like a bunch of self-centred thugs and lowlifes, then they should only be able to recruit untrustworthy scum. If they act like heroes, they can have access to the full range of heroic allies. (NB: I believe this should also apply to the gaining of cohorts/henchmen etc. Reward those players who make an effort in-game, rather than forcing them to spend a feat..topic for another thread...).
6) Assuming the toad can crawl off and hide somewhere safe, allow it to overhear the villains bragging and planning.
Assuming the lair is not shielded, the PCs (or their allies) could scry/commune/etc for the toad, allowing for the raid on the lair. This is far more satisfying than having some injured goon blurt it out, and makes the PCs active searchers, rather than passive receivers of the info.
If the PCs manage to locate & storm the lair, defeat or drive off the inhabitants, rescue the toad, and restore him to normal, then quite frankly, they DESERVE to find out what's going on. Even if they just enter the lair, realise they're outclassed, the toad jumps into their arms and they flee/teleport to safety, they still deserve some credit.
Having the toad relate what it saw and heard rewards the player of the toad for his selfless actions, and gives him a story he can tell for years to come...far more satisfying than rolling up New Generic Fighter Level 7, reporting for duty.
Don't forget, that as DM, you are in the enviable position of knowing all the background, the motivations and plans of the NPCS, and it all seems totally clear to you. You probably spend hours banging your head against the wall, thinking “Why, oh why are my players so thick! Don’t they see the interwoven story-strands and appreciate the beauty of it all?”. However, the players only get tit-bits of information, not necessarily all together, and not necessarily from sources they can trust. Without the occasional revelation, they could just feel they’re being railroaded from one fight scene to the next. You can have the greatest plot in the world, but it’s wasted if the players never get to see it. So, it’s not a question of IF, but rather WHEN you reveal it. Once you realize that, it becomes easier to ‘let go’.
See the problem? So now the party's holy warrior (minus his gear and in toad form) has just been taken to the fiery sanctum at 7th level...So now what do I do? I'm looking for suggestions. I don't want to simply counter the player's tactic by simply saying "oh you didn't get teleported" or "you fell out of Zenith's clothes", Nor do I simply want to hand-wave it away and simply tell him to create a new PC since his current one is almost guaranteed to be killed.
So I want to do something interesting. How do I turn this to my advantage?
I would certainly NOT give the characters at this level a chance to find the fiery sanctum. They will very likely try to invade it and simply fail unless you change a lot of details in the campaign. If they don't succeed but know that it is there, they might feel very railroaded once they finally find out they have to go back to that place later in the campaign ("Oh, now we are allowed to go there!".
What I would do:
It seems you have not yet told the toad character where he is after the teleportation. I don't think it's necessary that Kravichak takes Zenith directly to the fiery sanctum. He could be taken to another place that's important to the cagewright plans, but not that important. This may likely be Orbius' manor, Thifirane's manor or simply the the temple of Wee Jas. Why this happens is to you but just because it's written in the text doesn't mean it has to happen this way. Maybe Kravichak was orderer to take Zenith to Orbius or someone who works for him and who will sort things out to bring Zenith to the fiery sanctum later. This way you could reveal any information you desire concerning Orbius, other cagewrights or maybe just the Wee Jas temples' sinister plans. You could give the toad the chance to free himself in one of these places and even let him see something important, for example the cage in the Wee Jas' temple.
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I would certainly NOT give the characters at this level a chance to find the fiery sanctum. They will very likely try to invade it and simply fail unless you change a lot of details in the campaign. If they don't succeed but know that it is there, they might feel very railroaded once they finally find out they have to go back to that place later in the campaign ("Oh, now we are allowed to go there!".
Hmm this is a good point, I was considering allowing the toad to gain a brief glimpse of part of the area, but I think it might be a good idea to hold it off. I may have an NPC mention it at some point though.
What I would do:
It seems you have not yet told the toad character where he is after the teleportation. I don't think it's necessary that Kravichak takes Zenith directly to the fiery sanctum. He could be taken to another place that's important to the cagewright plans, but not that important. This may likely be Orbius' manor, Thifirane's manor or simply the the temple of Wee Jas. Why this happens is to you but just because it's written in the text doesn't mean it has to happen this way. Maybe Kravichak was orderer to take Zenith to Orbius or someone who works for him and who will sort things out to bring Zenith to the fiery sanctum later. This way you could reveal any information you desire concerning Orbius, other cagewrights or maybe just the Wee Jas temples' sinister plans. You could give the toad the chance to free himself in one of these places and even let him see something important, for example the cage in the Wee Jas' temple.
You're right, our session ended with the derro teleporting away with Zenith's body. Since he's dead, this is a perfect excuse for him to have teleported to the temple of wee-jas, to get Zenith resurrected. And since the holy warrior is a servant (although in bad standing) of wee-jas, I think it'll make the betrayal all the worse. And it will add to his crisis of faith. This will spur some good role-playing on that player's part I hope.
How about this, the toad becomes the witness of an infiltration attempt of Celeste, who will be imprisoned during the course of events. While doing this, she comes across the polymorphed toad and enables him somehow to escape.
I like introducing Celeste in some way. I have another idea on how to break the spell on the PC, but I may incorporate this.
I think this is what I will do:
Kravichak will teleport himself and Zenith's body to the temple of wee-jas. Since Embril is supposed to be retreating to the fiery sanctum at this point in the campaign, it will be a good time for this to happen. At the same time, she will be bringing the last of the real soul cages with her, leaving the prototype behind.
This will give the toad/holy warrior a chance to escape while in the city. I think I will also have Orbius (in beholder form) visiting with Embril to oversee Zenith's capture. Celeste, who has been tracking the beholder will use this opportunity to try and gain info, but the PC can witness her being charmed and imprisoned, thus
I think I just figured out how to free the PC. Kauphron is supposed to fall out of favour with the Cagewrights at the start of the next adventure, so the timing is perfect. I will have him be in the temple to aid in the transportation of the last cage. Spotting the PC, he realizes that this may be a better means of passing the Test of the Smoking eye, and will use a scroll of Break Enchantment on the PC and help him escape. This will have a two-fold effect. It solidifies Kauphron's break with the cagewrights and will make him seem like a more likely ally when he appears at the start of Chapter Six.
And the best part of this is, since the Player in questionj is my roomate, we can handle this all "off-camera" outside of the regular game session.
Hmm... well that is tough spot.
Firstly, I would have the toad-guy see Embril as she collects Zenith's body. Then I'd have Kravichak see the toad and collect it up. He then announces that he is going to make it his familiar and teleports away with it.
Then the mad derro would go back to his lair with all the other derro's. It is from this place that either toad-boy can attempt escape (unlikely). This is a good way to stage a rescue, assuming your party can cure the wizard and scry on their ally to attempt the rescue. Then you scale that encounter with mad derro barbarians as you like. I'd make sure Kravicheck isn't there, or has left to get the final material components for the familiar bonding process.
Also note, that if the heroes don't save toad-boy, if you choose to have Kravichek make him his familiar, that would probably 1) drive the character completely mad, 2) bond him to kravichek until K is slain.
That way, you avoid the Fiery Sanctum fiasco, and still the player has a very slim chance to save that character.
As previously mentioned, you should probably let that Player use a Strider (or cleric of wee jas who is allied with him) for a PC for the rescue.
good luck!
-c
Great suggestions already, so I won't add more, except for one comment: "Don't you just love this game?" It's the unexpected drama and weird situations like that that make DMing a joy rather than a chore (most of the time.)
Great suggestions already, so I won't add more, except for one comment: "Don't you just love this game?" It's the unexpected drama and weird situations like that that make DMing a joy rather than a chore (most of the time.)
very true
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Hmm... well that is tough spot.Firstly, I would have the toad-guy see Embril as she collects Zenith's body. Then I'd have Kravichak see the toad and collect it up. He then announces that he is going to make it his familiar and teleports away with it.
Then the mad derro would go back to his lair with all the other derro's. It is from this place that either toad-boy can attempt escape (unlikely). This is a good way to stage a rescue, assuming your party can cure the wizard and scry on their ally to attempt the rescue. Then you scale that encounter with mad derro barbarians as you like. I'd make sure Kravicheck isn't there, or has left to get the final material components for the familiar bonding process.
Also note, that if the heroes don't save toad-boy, if you choose to have Kravichek make him his familiar, that would probably 1) drive the character completely mad, 2) bond him to kravichek until K is slain.
That way, you avoid the Fiery Sanctum fiasco, and still the player has a very slim chance to save that character.
As previously mentioned, you should probably let that Player use a Strider (or cleric of wee jas who is allied with him) for a PC for the rescue.
good luck!
-c
lol making him Kravichak's familiar is a brilliant idea. I never thought about it. I can almost picture my player's face if I pull that one....hmmm, actually that is an interesting idea. I may need to consider it. and having a link like this between a PC and one of the villains would be a neat twist
Bella Sara Charter Superscriber
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Great suggestions already, so I won't add more, except for one comment: "Don't you just love this game?" It's the unexpected drama and weird situations like that that make DMing a joy rather than a chore (most of the time.)
Exactly! It's also the sort of thing that you will never ever see spontanteously occur in a video game.
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Great suggestions already, so I won't add more, except for one comment: "Don't you just love this game?" It's the unexpected drama and weird situations like that that make DMing a joy rather than a chore (most of the time.)
exactly, which is one of the reasons I want to play this little twist out to the fullest. It's the unexpected events like this that really make the game shine