Hi,
This is my first post here to hello everyone.
I'm preparing to run SCAP from the Hardback and last night the guys all rolled their characters. I let them use the suggested method in the back of the book. I was pleased with the results - all of them are tough without being stupid.
Anyway this is the composition of the party as it stands:
Male Human Cleric of St. Cuthbert.
Female Human Paladin of St. Cuthbert.
Male Human Rogue.
Male Dwarf Barbarian.
Male Human Battle Sorcerer.
Three of them so far have chosen Traits from the back of the HC and the Paladin has chosen to be a noble. The Rogue has Touched in the Head trait. The Sorcerer is Wyrm Blooded.
They are all meeting up at the Lucky Monkey on their way to Cauldron. Each of them has to come up with a reason for wanting to go to Cauldron. None of them have been there before (apart from perhaps when they were young and too young to remember too much detail about the city).
I was wondering how to fit a female noble paladin into the scheme of things in Cauldron? I wondered about having her as a niece to one of the noble families in the city? What about being cousin to Alek Tercival? Has anyone any suggestions for what relationship to make this paladin?
I'm thinking I'm going to give the Rogue who is touched some dreams during the course of the campaign - there are loads of cool examples of this over on RPGenius I'm going to steal.
Thanks for your help in advance...
Cheers
Blakey
This is my first post here to hello everyone.
Welcome to the discussion.
They are all meeting up at the Lucky Monkey on their way to Cauldron. Each of them has to come up with a reason for wanting to go to Cauldron. None of them have been there before (apart from perhaps when they were young and too young to remember too much detail about the city).
Just curious why you wanted to do this? You have removed a lot of connection to the city by saying they are all outsiders. At the same time, what is the reason that they are all sticking together? Did they just "happen" to meet at the Lucky Monkey? Or are some of them childhood friends? Making sure the PCs have a reason to work together and trust each other is important for the long term. The 2 Cuthbertians are obvious, I'm just not sure about the dwarf. Why wouldn't the dwarf just join the other dwarves when he arrived in Cauldron? Was he a slave? Being a barbarian means he is uneducated compared to other dwarves. Possibly he is ashamed of his ignorance.
Being at the start means you can work the backgrounds. Once you start playing, it is very hard to retro the group's historical dynamics. To provide an example, I had 4 PCs grow up in Cauldron. One left to train in Sasserine, and he came home to meet with his childhood friends. He brought a new friend home with him (they are drinking buddies) and someone else they met on the road. As it turns out, the one they met on the road rubbed the other characters wrong and his leaving of the group was not an unhappy parting.
Nothing is lost by having some characters live in the city before the game begins. The players will be interested in exploring. The citizen PCs can lead them around without many problems. In this case, the character knowledge is more than the player knowledge on the city. Have them ask you to fill in gaps on what they know. Grab the Cauldron Almanac from RPGenius for a great summary of the sections of Cauldron.
I was wondering how to fit a female noble paladin into the scheme of things in Cauldron? I wondered about having her as a niece to one of the noble families in the city? What about being cousin to Alek Tercival? Has anyone any suggestions for what relationship to make this paladin?
Have you read Delvesdeep's alternate SCAP plot? If you are planning to use it, I would suggest that the Cuthbertians come from Sasserine's temple, from which Shebeleth will soon follow. This provides connections and plot foreshadowing. As to which family, she could be related to the Bradley-Dipinshires (relatives of the Aslaxins from Sasserine, detailed in Delvesdeep's Demonskar Ball). Having her related to Alek might be interesting if she became a paladin to try to follow in his footsteps (i.e. teenage crush, hero in her mind). This will make the Demonskar Legacy memorable for her.
I'm thinking I'm going to give the Rogue who is touched some dreams during the course of the campaign - there are loads of cool examples of this over on RPGenius I'm going to steal.
There is a trait called Dream Haunted that does this. If you are going to give dreams to him, stick with the ones are about Adimarchus's fall. Being Touched in the Head can signify a connection to Adimarchus's madness.
I hope I am not pelting you with too much here. Read through the forums; there are lots of good posts on starting up and foreshadowing future events. If your group is into role-playing instead of hack-and-slash, there are a lot of opportunities to make the SCAP a much more well-rounded story that the players can experience.
I wish you luck in working through this large-scale adventure. It is quite an undertaking, though it is one of the best that I have begun.
They are all meeting up at the Lucky Monkey on their way to Cauldron.Just curious why you wanted to do this? You have removed a lot of connection to the city by saying they are all outsiders.
Why? Simply because I'd like the players to know as much as the characters know about Cauldron. i.e. nothing much at the start. I feel I need to have the *players* tied to and interested in the city and its safety, not just assume that the characters are as they grew up there. To that end I need the characters to develop in game attachments to the places and NPCs of the city which I can do through RPing during our sessions. They'll soon come to care for the city and the people in it I believe. Especially as they become famous and get recognised by the townsfolk.
At the same time, what is the reason that they are all sticking together? Did they just "happen" to meet at the Lucky Monkey? Or are some of them childhood friends? Making sure the PCs have a reason to work together and trust each other is important for the long term.
Yes they have just happened to wander into the inn at the same time. The two Cuthbert-ites are together of course. I am not yet sure why they are going to the city. Any suggestions?
The others happen to be there at this time and are going to the city for reasons of their own. I've asked all players to come up with a reason why they are headed to the city.
The evening that the party meet in the Lucky Monkey a rich merchant called Charlie Kilkarin will stagger into the inn, having been attacked by dinosaurs on the road and his guards all killed and eaten.
He will ask the characters (all clearly adventurers) to escort him to the city. This is how they'll form as a group.
It might not be awe inspiring but it will work for my group.
The two Cuthbert-ites are together of course. I am not yet sure why they are going to the city. Any suggestions?
Well, Sarcem the High Priest of St Cuthbert from Cauldron is currently in Sasserine making Wands of Control Water (See the Flood Season chapter). Possibly the Cuthbertians have been sent to review how well Jenya is doing, as she is acting as the person in charge.
The others happen to be there at this time and are going to the city for reasons of their own. I've asked all players to come up with a reason why they are headed to the city.
Here are some things to consider that may help them. Cauldron is a city of nobles that control most of the money in the area. They own various plantations and are prime consumers. Sasserine ships a LOT of product to here. It is also a hub to get access to the various smaller towns (i.e. Hollowsky, Redgorge, etc.)
So for the rogue, possibly going where the money lies could be his prime motivation. Obviously his alignment will affect his motivation. He could also be trying to get away from his past (i.e. he needed to leave Sasserine in a hurry). Cauldron is the largest city in the area, so possibly he's going there looking for new opportunities.
The Dwarven barbarian is more difficult, as the dwarven relationship with the people of Cauldron is strained. Given that he is a barbarian, he is probably a hill dwarf. If he takes the view that the rest of the group are "young 'uns", he might stick around. He might also be interested in dealing with a gnoll infestation that has been building near the Demonskar (due to the presence of Nabthatoron).
The Battle Sorceror could be pursuing the legend of Surabar Spellmason, the greatest mage of this area. Possibly like a tourist trying to experience this, or as a dedicated follower/believer. This would tie very well into the plot later on.
There are also relatives in Cauldron (commoners), or things like trying to track someone down for revenge.
As the players don't know anything about Cauldron, you as the DM need to provide threads they can grab onto and use to "tie" themselves into the story. Hopefully these help.
I chose to go the route of the party being outsiders to Cauldron also. My group were natives of Redgorge and went to the city in the first session. I felt in order to properly introduce the city to them it was easier to reveal it in bits and pieces as they experience it. I think it has worked out really well so far.
I also recommend delving into the information on here and theRPGenius.com because you will find lots to really flesh out the game. My game would have been much less enjoyable if I hadn't borrowed so liberally from the ideas presented.
Thanks for all your help guys. Campaign prep has gone on at great speeds and I'm looking to start playing on Wednesday now!
I have borrowed liberally from here and RPGenius and will continue to do so. Will also continue to read here and no doubt post further questions and problems for your delectation.
Cheers again!
Blakey
My group were natives of Redgorge and went to the city in the first session.
Just curious Eater, did you foreshadow the Chisel to the PCs, given that they are natives of Redgorge? Are you looking at the Seige of Redgorge adventure?
Just curious Eater, did you foreshadow the Chisel to the PCs, given that they are natives of Redgorge? Are you looking at the Seige of Redgorge adventure?
I have planned on putting the Siege of Redgorge into the game. I'm using all of delvesdeep's alternatives. I thought starting in Redgorge was a great way to hook the players into all of the events that occur there later. I also chose to start them off with The Burning Plague so they are already considered local heroes.
I did not foreshadow the Chisel as events were moving pretty fast for them but one of my players did me the favor of writing into his backstory that he worked at the Redhead Miner's Inn before hooking up with the elven sisters that make up the rest of the party. I plan on pulling that in but I haven't decided exactly how yet. Any suggestions? I'm always open to other folks input.