In the campaign the PC"s are all ancient evil powers destroyed thousands of years ago at their heigth of power reborn as mortals. They are sadistic, self-indulgent and depraived.
This is really how me and my friends prefer it but it does present problems when trying to stay with a preset adventure path.
Tools of villians like the dopplegangers mindstones, cursed items, and evil artifacts are all prizes to seek out, replicate, and turn to their own use rather then something to be destroyes, or avoided.
Certiant villians are potential allies, patrons, or protoges. (Especially after the dread necromancer animates them as an intelligent undead, or the wizard used that corrupt spell to eat their brain and gain the knowledge to continue creating monstrocities)
Alot of the assumed allies even need to be changed as most wouldnt ally with a bunch of undead and fiends who wish to destroy Kyuss out of rivalry.
The whole campaign is focused on usurping Kyuss rather then stopping him.
I really want to allow the PC's to do their evil plotting (sometimes) successfully so really I want to know what are some of the main things that will probably change, what should I do to prepare for each adventure and what could prove a problem. (legal issues, said NPC's living/dieing/dominated, adventures rendered void because no self respecting succubus is going to give up traveling by litter to trudge through some smelly swampland to rescue some old wizard to weak to even handel herself, ect)
One of the most interesting potential interactions is with Kelvos the Wormtouched as one of the group is a fallen ghaele himself. Another is toying with being a priest of Vecna which blows some assumed points of view right out of the water.
If you arnt sure you have anything particularly useful to say feel free to post a reply anyway, I enjoy just convorsation about my campaigns anyway as it generated ideas.
Hey Elvenlust,
I'm also running an evil group through AoW and a lot of your concerns have past my mind. I'm taking it a few modules at a time and not looking to far down the road. Part of the fun of running a campaign like this is it really opens up the possibilties since you never know what the PCs will do (as opposed to knowing what they're supposed to do).
For instance, Diamond Lake is a perfect "anything goes" environment for the party,there's plenty of corruption to choose from. Currently my group is working for Gelch Tilgast but I suspect at some point they'll betray him for Smenk, which will ultimately end in bloodshed as Smenk is loyal to no one. Evil begets evil and all that, right?
One of my players is a lizardman cleric of Erythnul, which is really easy to tie into the campaign. I'm curious to see how he'll deal with the Erythnul faction of the Ebon Triad when they get there, whether he'll ally with them or just kill them in disgust. Either way it will create some interesting devlopments.
Looking way down the road, I think I'll have to come up with an evil silent partner for the party that opposes Kyuss but allows the PCs to pursue their own evil goals. Maybe an agent of Iuz or the Horned Society. I'm sure my greedy, magic lusting PCs will want to keep the artifacts they find and I'm sure they will try to kill anyone (evil or good) who tries to take them. The trick is to keep them occupied with their own evil schemes/goals and that they conflict with the goals of Kyuss.
That's it so far...
Im missing the first 2 installments (though i own the 2nd one i think i left it at the hosbital ages ago -_-) do you know where i might be able to find out what is important that continues on? I decided id like to probably try and make the first adventure "Shut-In" there is something about that one that is very creepy (it's the first adventure in issue 128) and probably try to follow it up with wingclippers revenge from issue 132. The whole group seems to love evil fey (me probably even more then the others).
From what I remember from reading the 2nd instalation of AOW is three rogue priests of specific gods (I know who they are but im in faerun and the only deity im not changing is vecna, Bane is a deadringer for Hextor, and im thinking maby Cyric for Erythnul) I remember the priests and they all die no matter what to power up the ebon aspect. This is all in a mine that someone corrupt and high up in the community is profeteering and covering up for the ebon triad with. What resource are they mineing? How does that mage that goes with them to BWK tie into this anyway?
While "Shut-In" and "Wingclippers Revenge" seem to have no ability to tie in to it one offers a very compelling way to involve the PC's in the politics of the area, I suppose I should probably just try to put togeather the 2nd installment from memory with a little help from others and ignore WR. I probably need to post this is a seperate post anyway.
Your last paragraph Luz is especially helpful, I've sort of been mulling such a thing over anyway. Me and my friends have a history of building or takeing over a stronghold for a base of opperation and palace of sin. With the evil schemes comming into fruitation im pretty sure tempting the PC's with something very powerful or exotic but delaying the ability for full aquisition (such as if they try to breed Octopins) a few levels to that it's still useful to them but hardly game shattering.
I think the biggest thing you're going to have to adapt is the NPCs that are patrons and drivers of the storyline. If the PCs are 'All for Us', it may be hard for them to get the tips, hints and info they will need to progress.
You will have to sub some of your own to mimic the roles of some to the more prominant good NPCs. Other than that, there is no reason the PCs can't be evil if it's their cup o tea. It will make more work for you, but, shouldn't hurt the story.
Good luck and let us know how it goes!
Im missing the first 2 installments (though i own the 2nd one i think i left it at the hosbital ages ago -_-) do you know where i might be able to find out what is important that continues on? ...
From what I remember from reading the 2nd instalation of AOW is three rogue priests of specific gods (I know who they are but im in faerun ... I remember the priests and they all die no matter what to power up the ebon aspect. This is all in a mine that someone corrupt and high up in the community is profeteering and covering up for the ebon triad with. What resource are they mineing? How does that mage that goes with them to BWK tie into this anyway?
If you're missing issues and can't get back copies, make sure you download the Age of Worms Overload, as it gives the campaign outline. If I remember correctly, it also gave conversion info for running in Faerun and who to substitute for the Ebon Triad. I've found it very helpful in changing details I want to change while still making sure the major plot elements are met. I don't remember the issue numbers, but if you've got the issue with the 3rd installment, easy to count back and start hunting around in the resources for it. (can't remember if it was it's own supplement or part of one of the standard issue supplements.)
As far as the plot elements of the first two (if you're a player, stop reading NOW!)..... there's really not much in the first two you have to worry about.
Big thing in the first one is finding a green worm in a lab along with a clue to look under Dourstone mine for cultists (in a letter from Smenk to Filge, which I think you can also get in the on-line supplement for that issue). The rest of it's looting the Whispering Cairn. You go back to it later in the campaign, but I haven't gotten there yet, so someone who HAS can post whether anything the PCs are supposed to do in Whispering Cairn has a big impact on what you do there later. There's also a piece that I cut out of mine where you find some artifacts (one is a piece of the Rod of Seven Parts if I remeber correctly) that your group is supposed to hand over to someone else for study, and the artifacts come back into play like 8 games later. Which is why I just cut it out entirely.
The big thing in the second one is routing the Ebon Triad cultists under Dourstone mine (in answer to your question, I don't remember what mineral they mine, but the big two in Diamone Lake are silver and iron, so pick one... doesn't matter to the plot). You mention the Ebon Triad being three rogue priests, but it's bigger than that. The Ebon Triad is a heretical cult, whose big focus is to bring about an "Overgod" comprised of a merging of Vecna, Hextor, and Erythnul. The main churches of these three deities do not recognize the Ebon Triad and consider them heretics. So, in the Ebon Triad, you have worshipers that revere ONE of the three deities, but work with (though they don't always get along very well) Ebon Triad followers of the other two to help further the cult's goal of an Overgod.
Under Dourstone mine, (and you can get the maps as part of that issue's supplement) is a MAJOR area that's been parceled off into three separate areas, each controlled by followers of one of the three deities. Kill the baddies and stop the Ebon Aspect from taking shape (or let it take shape, break out of the mine, and wreak havoc on the outskirts of town before reinforcements from the garrison arrive, which is what I did). None of that is really central to the plot anyway. The big thing HERE is the PCs doing enough damage to the cult in Diamond Lake that word of them spreads among the other cells and operatives start watching them. That's it, that's ALL you gotta do for the next arc to unfold nicely.
Wow you have all been so helpful, thank you. Where can I find the Age of Worms Overload? (Im going to search for it right now but if I cant find it it will be nice to have a link) I know alot of dungeon adventures have downloadable suppliments but I havnt ever been able to find one.
Where can I find the Age of Worms Overload? (Im going to search for it right now but if I cant find it it will be nice to have a link) I know alot of dungeon adventures have downloadable suppliments but I havnt ever been able to find one.
Here's the address for the overload (I don't know how to make a hyperlink, so just copy and paste): http://paizo.com/dungeon/resources
Should be the first thing you see. As for the supplements, Scroll down the page a bit and click on "dowloads" and that will take you to links for all the issues. You just need to know which issue numbers you need.