So my players got to the Soul Pillars last session, and I just wasn't prepared for their questions. I ended the session and promised to pick up with the Soul Pillars next week. I'm just not good at the whole cryptic answers thing. Anyone care to offer a list of sample questions and answers? One of the PCs actually asked "What are the names of the Cagewrights involved in this particular plot?" Is it okay to tell them that?
I will have to go back and read over them again, but I would think that the soul pillars would only have the collected knowledge of the SpellWeavers in them and would not be as useful for finding out current events.
That said, I don't think giving out names would make a difference... though I would leave out the apprentices since that is significant still. At this point they have a good idea that Ember Aloustani is no good after sacking her church and all, if there were doubts that should make them feel better. But you want to hold off on giving away Thifirane still (not sure on my names... but I think you know who I mean).
Use the section in the front of the SCAP HC that talks about checks the PCs can make on the Cagewrights as to how much info you can give out when.
Or make them specify WHICH plot they are talking about and only reveal the specific people involved in the parts they mention... they don't really have enough info to know the overarching plot I would think.
Sean Mahoney
So my players got to the Soul Pillars last session, and I just wasn't prepared for their questions. I ended the session and promised to pick up with the Soul Pillars next week. I'm just not good at the whole cryptic answers thing. Anyone care to offer a list of sample questions and answers? One of the PCs actually asked "What are the names of the Cagewrights involved in this particular plot?" Is it okay to tell them that?
None of the 13 are known to the PC's at this time (except Allustani and unless she's made an actual appearance in your game she is known by name only), so dropping a few names may make for better encounters when they do begin "Collecting rings" in Foundation of flame, were my PC's are now. None of teh 13 are really known to them so as they encounter each cagewright there is very little emotional investment in the encounter.
Cryptic answers are a pain in the butt for me as well so I wont be much help there. My players asked questions about finding Terem who had gone missing again by then. They asked about the Lord Mayor who was of course beholder droppings. Strangely they never asked for the names of the cagewrights or there agents or associates.
On the one hand, the Soul Pillars contain ancient spell weaver lore, they wouldn't know anything about the current happenings, such as the Cagewrights.
On the other hand, the adventures after Soul Pillars to the end of the campaign is one big fight, continuous against the Cagewrights. If your PCs don't know anything about the Cagewrigts, those are going to be some very emotionally-uninvolved adventures as has been pointed out.
Personally, I'd find some way to get info about the Cagewrights to the players at this point. Maybe Festor didn't trust his fellow Cagewrights and so he asked the pillars many questions about them. The pillars know that there is a Cagewright named Dry'yrd and that he is a Demondand (or whatever he actually is) - because Festor told the pillar, etc. I wouldn't be overly cryptic. I'd be sure the PCs know about Carceri, that the tree can open the portal, etc. In short, use the pillars to foreshadow the upcoming adventures.
I think it would be cool if you gave the players info about the Cagewrights, but not their true names, just the names they go by as handles in their secret organization, and some interesting details about attrocities, betrayals, crimes, etc. committed by each which makes them really hatable.
Maybe the Soul Pillars "take" information from people that use them as much as they give. So the Soul Pillars no all about the Cagewrights - they sucked it out of Festor's brain while he was using them. Or at least they know what Festor knew.
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Well, here's some samples of what I've used for divination for my SCAP campaign - it might not be helpful for specifics, but it might give you some ideas on how to put divination riddles together ...
• Haunted Hollow Divination – “Alabaster Lore lies within a frozen fountain, and death stands ready beneath watching boughs”
• Soul Pillars divination - “beneath the water, behind the ice, the soul pillars rest beneath the burning rift”
• Divination Var – “when the gate to Bar-Irak opens, an overlord he will be”
• Divination Church of Selune – “the unsleeping priest awaits the hero’s unborn son”
• Divination how to destroy black blades – “stygian steel will shatter on black ice”
• Divination Hamrythus – “the dark son is not far from his mistress mother”
• Divination Mhialla – “Mhialla does not sleep but Mhalyst meets with dark counsel in Taskaunt soon”
Hope this helps -- hey James, you think Dungeon would be interested in a query with 50 divination riddles? ;>
-- hey James, you think Dungeon would be interested in a query with 50 divination riddles? ;>
Ohhh. I like this idea a lot.
I went (or rather, am going) with a different route. The SCAPHC says that the Soul Pillars contain vast amounts of arcane knowledge and lore, so I'm going to use them to incorporate some cross-campaign setting spells and feats. I'm playing the SCAP in Greyhawk and am going to give my players (mainly my archivist, war mage and bard players) access to spells from Eberron, Forgotten Realms and Dragon magazine. I will make a list of course, not giving free reign to any thing they want.
My archivist player has un-godly knowledge checks and the party has figured out pretty much everything but names on the Cagewrights already, except actual names. I may throw some other bits and pieces of lore to them instead.