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I've been running The Whispering Cairn for a few sessions. My PCs finally got out of the Cairn and into the plot. After searching the farm and connecting the arm to Skutch, the PCs go looking for Kullen.
The 'face' (Shifter Urban Ranger) goes to talk to Kullen. He makes small talk and attempts to bring up Skutch. Diplomacy roll is a 4.... A big fight happens, and the PCs get trounced.
The next evening they corner Merovinn Bask when he's drunk and threaten him with graverobbing charges if he doesn't cooperate. He's too drunk to think it through, so he spills the beans (good intimidate check, too).
They head to Filge's (who I have as Dread Necromancer from Heroes of Horror) place. After ransacking the bottom two floors, they fight him and his zombies in the operating theater.
Long story short, they once again get trounced. They have retreated to Diamond Lake to recover.
My concept for Filge: He's there at obsensibly at Smenk's request, but he is a follower of the Shadow and wants the Ebon Triad cleaned out for personal reasons. If he survives, somehow, he's going to take the place of Darl Quethos (as some other, brilliant DM did in his campaign).
I'm wondering what other DM's think of this:
Filge spends a day or so ranting and raving, and his other Tomb Mote arrives back from its trip wherever (the other was destroyed, by the way). He sends that to Smenk, who has his thugs snatch the PCs (either alone or as a group). After Smenk and Filge interrogate them, Filge offers them the skeleton they want (once he knows that they want it) in exchange for clearing out the cult in Dourstone Mine....
Sounds good to me. It advances the story well and leaves many options available for future encounters with NPC's. I really like the Darl = Filge bit. Just one thing bothers me. How would Smenk view the PC's clearing the mines? Yes I am sure he would be happy to not have the Ebon Triad breathing down his neck but surely he knows how much stuff down there can incriminate him. Perhaps after the group clears it out Smenk sends Kullen and Crew to finish them off so they can't report on him. Just my 2CP
Out of curiousity, what class and level is Darl Quethos? I was thinking of making him the "true" Faceless One, but looking at the picture it looks like Darl is a cleric. Perhaps I could go clr/wiz/mystic theurge
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I believe he's a level 17 or 18 cleric, yes. He worships Vecna.
I hadn't thought of the idea of him being supplanted by Filge or read it in these forums; brilliant! I fear that ol' Filge will not survive his encounter with the players in my game a few hours from now, though....
On-the-topic, I think that's a good "twist", yes.
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I think Filge is growing potential to be one of the Best NPCs EVAR. I made him extra-twisted, with some disturbing pornographic material tucked under his bed, and as suggested by another poster, a Slaymate (from Libris Mortis) added to his menagerie. I had him call her "Sweetie", and she called him "daddy". Dark stuff, but the players seemed to enjoy it.
The Warforged Artificer felt especially badly for the obviously deranged and lonely necromancer: "He's watching us tear apart his life's work, all the things he's poured his life and energy into."
*chills*
We'll see what they do with him; he's already spilled the beans on Smenk's dillemma and why he (Filge) is in town. Two of the players/characters seem at least somewhat sympathetic to him ("he hasn't done anything illegal, really... that half-orc's crew brought him the bones"), another is still seething after identifying the rug in the bedroom, and the fourth is indifferent but well connected to the garrison, so she might push for incarceration.
Smenk is very, very likely to enter the picture directly, and soon, and together he and (similar to the original poster) Filge will provide impetus for entering the mineshese first few adventures are looking to fit together seamlessly. This sort of verisimilitude just couldn't be accomplished by me outside the Adventure Path format, despite many efforts in the past 15 or so years of game-mastering.
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So, here's what happened:
The party spent a full day, plus daylight of the next day, resting in town (full bed-rest to regain lost strength). During that time, Filge got Kullen (via the Tomb Mote) and his gang to retrieve a number of skeletons and such from the area. They looted the Feral Dog's dog-boneyard and also got the owl-bear's corpse.
Filge animated them and waited for the party. Another day and Kullen and his gang were going to retrieve the party.
The party arrived, dodged the few traps that had been installed, and went to the top floor, where Filge was waiting.
Filge, with his mass of new skeletons plus the Bugbear and Greta, attempted to negotiate. The Paladin of the Silver Flame didn't particularly like that idea, and combat was on.
Like before, Filge's undeads rushed the party. They did better this time, with skeletons being able to move + attack. Sadly, the low hit-die meant the paladin's turn (pal 1/cleric 1) was able to decimate them. Eventually, after Filge downed the Ranger and the Fighter, the paladin delivered a major blow to Filge, taking him from 20 hp to 7 hp. He'd been hit before, and I decided then that Filge was pretty much done at that point and had that blow sever one of his arms.
Filge surrendered at that point, and none of the party members relieved the paladin of his captive <grin />.
Filge provided information honestly, but was able to conceal his true motives (The Ebon Triad includes a faction of Shadow worshippers, and Filge worships the Shadow. And he wants to get out from Smenk's thumb) behind omission.
The group turned Filge over to the Church of the Silver Flame (St. Cuthburt), since the paladin is a silver flame worshipper. The church is planning to send Filge to the capital (Wroat) and have him tried by the King's judges there (less corrupt).
The party is going into the mine next session (after finishing the Cairn). Perhaps Kullen and crew will be waiting on the way out... Probably not. I'd like to have Kullen be on the orc crew that shows up in Library of Last Resort.
The church knows he's a necromancer, but nothing more. They'll keep him locked away from his spellbook (which he doesn't actually use or need - it had undead research, in my campaign). In a small town like that, I think that would be enough (given he lost a hand). One of Filge's powers as a Dread Necromancer is to cause a 1d8 negative energy thing 1/round with a touch attack (can't remember the name). I think that he'll, at some point, use that to escape.
[...] This sort of verisimilitude just couldn't be accomplished by me outside the Adventure Path format, despite many efforts in the past 15 or so years of game-mastering.
I have had a similar experience, the materials provided by the adventure path have really helped me kick this campaign up a notch from any previous one. Kudos to the designers, both for the overall vision but as much to the individuals who have put together some really good hooks, NPCs and settings. But of course hooks and such are no good if there's not a good DM and set of players to pick up and make good use of them, so the verisimilitude we manage to achieve from time to time is a combination of good game designers as well as good DM and players. So congats to us all!