During the siege of Rannick, my group of professional looters... erm... adventurers... decided to have the surviving Black Arrows and Shalelu run distraction while they infiltrated the Rannick from the hidden tunnels.
Long story short, Lucretia got away after the other Black Arrows stumbled into an ambush.
They've finally also noticed that Kaven "Backstabber" Windstrike and Shalelu have not returned, after last being seen running for their lives from an Ogre patrol.
Metagamers that they are, they've figured that there's no point worrying about it since it's OBVIOUSLY JUST THE DM REDUCING HIS NPC WORKLOAD and that this was just A CONVENIENT POINT TO WRITE HER OUT OF THE STORY and as such are currently focused on rebuilding Rannick and figuring out how to profiteer from it.
...
Hoo boy...
I've been dropping large hints that something spectacularly bad is going down at Skull's Crossing as well but they can't currently see past the $$$ signs embedded in their pupils and have assumed the flash flood was a localized event.
...
Any suggestions how to get things back on track? And for that matter, any idea what Barl Breakbones is likely to do with a captive? I figure Kaven is slimy enough to try and talk himself back into Lucretia's good graces. Alas poor loyal Shalelu... not so much...
What's a guy called Barl Breakbones gonna do with a captive... That's a toughie bro. Shalelu's not gonna be hopping after any more bugbears, that's for sure. Then again, killing her might be too quick, so a rescue could be possible.
Punish your players for their ignorance horribly. Nothing motivates a party to get back on track like the desire for vengeance. And what motivates vengeance better than watching all their hopes and dreams for bling going up in flames?
As for Shallelu, well, the giant is going to want to know what she knows. So that gives him an excuse to keep her around. I don't imagine she's going to be particularly cooperative.
Been re-reading this adventure, my group have just finished Skinsaw, and will start this on Sunday. My view is if the group are going to sit around doing nothing while everything goes to the dogs, then they'll have to deal with the outcome.
Not bothering to deal with the skull crossing problem will destroy TF, pure and simple. If Lucretia is about, she can order whatever forces are left to have raids on the remaining townsfolk. She managed to brand over 200 of them with the Sihedron Rune and there's bound to be some left that weren't on Paradise when it went down and survived the flooding. More deaths mean more souls for big K.
Ogres aren't going to bother looking for the rune to see who to kill, they're just going to batter townspeople, they're going to need a lift once they found that a load of their clan have been killed at the Fort, they'll see it as revenge.
Also, have some townsfolk escape via one of the ferries and make it back to Magnimar. Once the authorities tell whats been going on, they won't be so welcome.
The clock just ticked down further. The doomsday clock is at 11. Hilarity will probably ensue when the dam bursts.
It'll probably be funny for the PCs when they suddenly find themselves master of a formerly strategic fort, suddenly rendered less tactically important with the destruction to the location it was supposed to protect.
The clock just ticked down further. The doomsday clock is at 11. Hilarity will probably ensue when the dam bursts.
Don't worry men! Take cover behind Shalelu's ears, and Groteus himself won't be able to harm you!
|
Not dealing with Skull Crossing will ultimately do more than destroy Turtleback Ferry, especially if the dam completely collapses. The dam is holding back what amounts to an artificial inland sea. TF will be washed away, as would the other lake front villages in the immediate area. The rivers downstream will escape their banks. The southern marsh (can't recall the name off the top of my head) could experience some growth for the short term from the flooding and Magnimar could even see a dramatic increase in the river water levels heading into the ocean.
With this amount of devastation, their dreams of revenue should be replaced with horror. After all, no revenue can be gained from a stronghold when the only beings living nearby will be constantly raiding their fort. Reinforcements would be pretty much out of the question as folks would be more focused on the disasters in their own areas.
The group I am running through this initially thought about blowing off the dam (though they did go help the village when one of the TF residents they met and dealt with came riding up in a panic), until they looked at the map and saw how freaking HUGE the lake behind the dam was. Add to this a PC with the Leadership feat and a desire to acquire followers and a cohort and they decided to follow up on the dam.
|
I know what I do with metagaming like that.
Take shalelu and kaven's character, level them up to a threat to the pc by taking one of the nastiest PrC I can find and throw them at them in the next adventure when they assault the fortress of the stone giants. Or you could have them hunt for the characters after all, it's a ranger and a rogue.
They should know that former allies can become new enemies after enough torture. Nothing like a destroyed mind makes a nice chaotic villain.
Implosion... Spectacular Implosion...
I'm such a bad DM for indulging in this, and I may need to find a new group past this point, but it was nothing if satisfying.
*CUE DAM-BUSTERS MARCH*
One morning, the PCs woke to the sound of a thunderous roar coming from the river... and a hard ride later, come to the realization that their plans to charge the Turtleback Ferry villagers for their 'protection' might no longer be a viable plan...
Since the plan to charge a village protection money required a village and that nobody was going to care about maintaining a fort that protected nothing...
The group snapped.
They rushed to the dam, and upon realizing that the collapse had been engineered, tracked the ogres to Hook Mountain, bent on genocide, and proceed to carve through the ogres of the hook, stopping to cut down Kaven, though not before he mentions that he's "batting for the winning team".
Ploughing through mountain lair, the PC's break into the site of the abandoned shrine, catching an ogre... taking his liberties with the chained body of a familiar looking elf strapped to a demonic looking statue.
They kill the ogre... which suckers them in close enough for the Akarazug [a soul engine powered construct] (Pathfinder #12) to which the body is chained to slap them around as the screaming manifestation of their old friend pleads for release and apologizes for the beating administered in equal measure.
They successfully destroy the construct 'killing' her (though not before getting horribly pounded and losing another party member to 'Soul Steal').
At this point... the players are so traumatized and indignant that their DM was willing to go to such lengths that they ask to end the session immediately after the fight. (They don't know they're one room away from Barl.)
Apparently, according to a neutral third party who I play WARMACHINE with, complaints include the fact that I'm 'Metaing against them' and that this was 'a player screw session'...
If they aren't brave enough to say so to my face though, I'm going to carry on obliviously.
Still, preparing for the worst. Thinking of running Second Darkness anyway... though not with current group.
|
nice use of the Akarazug thingy construct...
as far as "player-screw" sessions...if they think it's you vs. them, the game is over already, just walk away.
if they think it's you retaliating against them for being selfish and oblivious, you could always just point out the WRITTEN TIMELINE in the adventure, letting them know this was planned from day 1. The could have stopped it, but without motivation from them, they have to deal with the end results.
if they're just venting about "losing" in make-believe, i'd do just as you're planning...be "oblivious" to their gripes, continue on as written, and hope for crits with that human-bane ogre hook.
good luck,
-t
nice use of the Akarazug thingy construct...
as far as "player-screw" sessions...if they think it's you vs. them, the game is over already, just walk away.
if they think it's you retaliating against them for being selfish and oblivious, you could always just point out the WRITTEN TIMELINE in the adventure, letting them know this was planned from day 1. The could have stopped it, but without motivation from them, they have to deal with the end results.
if they're just venting about "losing" in make-believe, i'd do just as you're planning...be "oblivious" to their gripes, continue on as written, and hope for crits with that human-bane ogre hook.
good luck,
-t
I agree on all counts. Well, maybe not on the Akarazug. That might have been overkill.
But I agree on all other counts. This just might not be a viable group.
Sounds like you've got yourself a group o' mafioso psychos, Irae. Speaking of which...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QW14e-qUMts
This puppy right here is a good, honest, sword & sorcery rehashing of a Dies Irae. Not sure if that's supposed to be comforting, but it cheers me right up. Anyway, they had it coming for not paying any bleeding attention to the city that they're trying to exploit for selfish gain. Go get yourself another crew, play through Second Darkness, and see to it that that poor goofy-eared elf gets justice.