So far my PCs are only in it for the money. It's just a job for them, even though some are from the city.. even having a house.
<evil idea>
How about if the one PC who has the house... his sorcerer wife happens to be shackleborn and gets kidnapped? <evil DM laugh>
..but the PCs are about halfway thru Jhazidrun and checked Keygan's book and know that he has not made any more keys. Hmmm I have to create a missing page from the book and put it somewhere... Or should I wait and have the cagewrights themselves kidnap the reluctant hero PC's wife? At what point in the campaign would be best for this?
-Darren
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I don't think you need to create a missing page in Keygan's journal - keep in mind that the skulks only kidnapped one of the Shackleborn by accident, so the Cagewrights would independently be targeting the PC's wife. As for when, you could do it during Zenith Trajectory - maybe part of the reason for sending them out to get Zenith is to keep them busy while the real kidnapping takes place.
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My players worked as mercenaries in the town for a good chunk of the book, opening up their own little guild hall and trying to hire town guards who were disenfranchised by the half orcs to come work for them.
Through a lot of the things they kept things much more business, always making sure there should be some sort of payoff before they took to doing something. Even the assassination attempt and the like brought retaliation but just enough that the PCs felt confident the other group wouldn't try it again.
What really changed things for the PCs was just before the assault on Wee Jas. The team had pretty much talked themselves out of it. There wasn't any pay going to be coming from it and it would be attacking a powerful church directly.
In an attempt to have the church send them 'a message' to get out of town I had a handful of undead attack the guildhall. The players, expecting a tough fight, cut them down easily. Once they were dispatched and looked at the players saw they were some of their own followers and guards. The story quickly became much more personal.
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I admit, Darren, this is tougher than it sounds. If the PCs are only interested in money Vhalantru can BUY them off!! He's smart enough to do that properly -- all thought out. And if they start getting queasy about it after the fact he can blackmail them by giving evidence of their activities (they're bound to have some) to authorities in Sasserine. That gets rid of them and makes him look noble and just in Sasserine.
Of course, the problem here is that even though it makes sense for Vhalantru, it could derail the campaign first by giving the PCs too much loot (from Vhalantru) and second by sending them to prison is Sasserine.
I'd recommend having Vhalantru make them "an offer they can't refuse" and then, in true Vader vs Calrissian tradition, sour the deal more and more. This will tick them off and they'll want to kill Vhalantru even without reward.
In other words, the best way to get the PCs to stop thinking money first is to have an NPC betray them!
-W. E. Ray
I admit, Darren, this is tougher than it sounds. If the PCs are only interested in money Vhalantru can BUY them off!! He's smart enough to do that properly -- all thought out. And if they start getting queasy about it after the fact he can blackmail them by giving evidence of their activities (they're bound to have some) to authorities in Sasserine. That gets rid of them and makes him look noble and just in Sasserine.
Of course, the problem here is that even though it makes sense for Vhalantru, it could derail the campaign first by giving the PCs too much loot (from Vhalantru) and second by sending them to prison is Sasserine.
I'd recommend having Vhalantru make them "an offer they can't refuse" and then, in true Vader vs Calrissian tradition, sour the deal more and more. This will tick them off and they'll want to kill Vhalantru even without reward.
In other words, the best way to get the PCs to stop thinking money first is to have an NPC betray them!
-W. E. Ray
Awesome idea! I think after Flood Season when the party finally has the proper attention from the Cagewrights this is a good idea.
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Hey, good luck -- just be careful; I'd definetly spend some prep time thinking it through. Consider what Vhalantru will offer them and how he can use it to blackmail them later. Do they already suspect he's evil? Think about what the PCs are likely to do with the bribe, how it can possibly affect game encounters. And of course, how Vhalantru will want to twist the bargain around: perhaps he doesn't give them important info regarding whatever (a cool magical item with an evil past; if the PCs use it in public...) And remember to keep in mind transitional opportunities back to the text once they've learned their lesson and hate the bad guys.
-W. E. Ray