|
My group loved playing the Prince of Redhand almost as much as I enjoyed DMing it. My players are currently just finishing up Zeech's Feast and cannot wait to talk to Lashonna. Who is she really? What is her relationship to Prince Zeech? Why fight the Ebon Triad and still allow the injustices in Alhaster? Is she Mother Maggot? How long has she been in the city? What about her thoughts on the ziggurat? What happened to Balakarde? These are just some of the things my players want to know. They do not yet know her true nature, but if they discover that, they will want to know where she stands as well. And you know what, so do I. The Prince of Redhand certainly went out of its way to paint a very bleak picture and this entire module as well as the end of the last one seems to have been leading up to this point - the party's meeting with Lashonna. Finally, some questions are going to get answered - or so I thought.
Imagine my disappointment in preparing to run LoLR when I read the all-important interview with Lashonna. It boils down to: "Ah yeah, so Balakarde was crazy and left some notes here, which despite my 16-year interest in them, I only managed to salvage this one page, so as you can see you have little choice but to go to this island and get some information on Dragotha, who, I know you have never heard of but trust me he's tough so this is important. Oh and, I let the secret out so now its a race for time. Right, off you go." Couple with this with the given answer for those that learn of her true nature: "Yeah so I am evil and undead. Trust me and if you don't, oh well, you can come back and kill me." Sheesh.
Now I am a huge Nicolas Logue fan so I am going to guess that he couldn't do Lashonna's story justice because of page count issues. He has a lot of module ahead of him, and there is only so much he can spend on hooking the party. However, this is just not going to cut it for my group and rather than parry a thousand questions after reading Lashonna's cut scene, I decided to do some tale-telling and give the party some meat to tear into and (just maybe) keep them from questioning Lashonna's role in the events by providing a red herring or two. Also, I wanted to do some foreshadowing so the group felt like things were finally beginning to make sense. The AoW has had enough mystery and railroading; with only 4 modules to go, it is time the party start seeing some cohesiveness.
With this in mind, I wrote the following. This replaces Lashonna's original speech, up to the point where she tells the group about Darl Quethos. You can run this part as written or play upon something Lashonna says in her story below ("...I am afraid more now know of this lore than ever before..."). Should the party learn she is a dragon, well she can handle that issue with ease ("Aren't silver dragons supposed to oppose evil?") and if they learn she is undead/evil, she can handle that as well ("I never said my encounters that day left me unchanged. That which I most loved - life itself - was lost to me that day, I exist now only for revenge, to see Dragotha fall and to stop his part in the Age of Worms". Note that this is no less than the absolute truth - this is exactly what Lashonna desires, though her ultimate goal remains hidden.)
I hope this helps at least one DM out there.
“Thank you for meeting with me tonight. I know why it is you are here, you wish to learn more about Balakarde. My sources in Alhaster have told me as much, and though you mentioned his name but a few times, you have very nearly wrecked centuries of planning for old lore does not die in Alhaster as it does in other places. However, I think for now we are safe and the tale may be told in its entirety. In truth I have little to say about Balakarde himself, but perhaps what I have to say will serve instead.” Lashonna pauses for a moment and searches your eyes before continuing. “What I am about to tell you is known to very few living things, though there are those things which do not live that also know this tale.” As she speaks these words, a shadow of pain crosses her flawless features but she swiftly regains her composure and continues.
“Two millennium ago, my father Tellanar was one of the leaders of the army that dared to approach the befouled city of Kaluth-Mar in the aftermath of Kyuss' failed apotheosis. It was his righteous army and the drudaic Order of the Storm that constructed the ring about the center of that accursed place that forever would bind the servants of Kyuss within its obsidian walls. Through Tylanthros, leader of the Order of the Storm, we learned that the ring was raised too late, for while it most assuredly bound the remaining servants of Kyuss in that benighted city, the great monolith that rested atop the ziggaraut was taken by the red dragon Dragotha years before. Even in that distant time, the name Dragotha was a name of death and fear. The heroes of the army quailed at the thought of seeking him out to reclaim the stone that held the essence of the failed god of writhing undeath.”
“Despite the risk, my father, the leaders of the Order of the Storm and others began to search for Dragotha. He was never found. Mighty spells were cast, the past and future were plumbed, the gods themselves were consulted to no avail. All that could be gleaned was that Kyuss remained trapped between worlds and that at some point in the future, his agents would move to bring him forth, to cover the world in darkness, to bring about the Age of Worms. So the Order established a network of Watchers in those places their divinations told them yet had a role to play in the coming darkness and they waited. Decades passed without a sign, and then a century and another and another. And then finally word came that Dragotha was dead, slain on another plane by the b#~*!-queen of dragons, Tiamat. But the elation was short lived, for the Watchers soon learned that Dragotha was remade by the will of Kyuss as a dracolich and it was this abomination that would serve as Kyuss' general when his armies blighted the land. But there was a glimmer of hope, for the Watchers were vigilant and they noted Dragotha's return to our plane; they watched him bore like a maggot into the heart of the Wormcrawl Fissure, a putrid offshoot of the great Rift Canyon that lies less than 200 miles north of this very spot. Plans long laid were put into motion. The Order gathered the Watchers and once again assembled an army. Little did they know what awaited them.” Lashonna pauses for a moment to sip her wine. She closes her eyes and collects herself for a moment and then resumes her tale.
“I had come of age by then and served in the vanguard of this army. My father and Tylanthros led our forces to the edge of the Rift Canyon and beyond. At my father's insistence, I remained above with our reinforcements. I know not what happened in that battle, only that Dragotha had built a vast undead army and our surprise attack became a pitched battle. Our forces were overcome and my father...” at this Lashonna cannot hide a catch in her throat, “fell, only to rise as a servant of Kyuss. As the undead swarmed toward our position, Tylanthros and other leaders of the Order of the Storm arrived, caked with blood and filth. They bore a chest or stone upon which were carved leering demonic and draconic faces. This, they claimed ,was Dragotha's phylactery. Their arrival could not have been more opportune, for just then Dragotha climbed into the sky above the battle and made straight for our position. His advance filled our foes with a madness and filled the hearts of our bravest with fear. But as his undead gaze took in those that stood against him, he saw that his phylactery was taken. What passes for wisdom in his mind gave him doubt or perhaps fear and he fled the field. This turn of events restored our hope and our forces were able to buy Tylanthros and the other leaders of the Order of Storms time to flee with the phylactery.”
“The next 50 years were ones of constant fear. One by one, the servants of Kyuss that survived the battle hunted down the Watchers and members of the Order that managed to escape. They searched too for the hiding place of Dragotha's phylactery but their search was in vain. For my part, I came here to this land at the instruction of Tylanthros himself. I was to assume the role of a Watcher and inform the Order should anything stir within the Wormcrawl Fissure. Over time, the city of Alhaster rose and my own divinations told me that this place has some part yet to play in the Age of Worms. I waited, always vigilant for the signs of Kyuss. I had a hand in destroying the Cult of the Ebon Triad and it was I that told the few Watchers that remained that the cult was but a front for the cult of Kyuss himself. I have remained here, acting quietly as an advisor to rulers great and small all the while maintaining a watchful eye on the events in Redhand.”
“This was the state of affairs when Balakarde found me twenty years ago. A new leader conquered Redhand, Prince Zeech, and I was busy ensuring I was a trusted advisor. Perhaps this distraction was why Balakarde was able to so readily convince me that he could aid me in my task. I met with him and heard how his research led him step by step to me. It seemed he knew much of the tale I already told you, though not as completely and not as accurately as I. I shared what I knew, glad to have found a compatriot that could help free the town of the last of the Ebon Triad. For his part, he was a good man, but I believe now he suffered some deep hurt at the hands of Kyuss that left him obsessed with the Age of Worms. As I worked with him, it became clear he trusted no one; he was feral and prone to bouts of melancholy or mania. One night he announced that he had learned enough, that there was nothing left for him to do here. I tried to get him to stay but it was no use. He left magically that evening, leaving only a scrap of his notes behind."
<Lashonna hands the party Balakarde's notes>
“He mentioned trying to learn more about Dragotha by traveling to the Wormcrawl Fissure. I advised against this reckless act but my words went unheeded. He never returned.”
“This brings us to tonight, and our meeting. I no longer can ignore the portents. Look at it this way: Balakarde learned much of this tale before he met me, which indicates things long held secret are coming into the light and I am afraid more now know of this lore than ever before. Prince Zeech is building that damnable ziggarut that reminds one far too much of the blasphemous architecture found in Kaluth-Mar. You heroes have risen, battle-weary from fighting the servants of Kyuss. Even the raving predictions of the cultists have come to pass. Something has changed, the writhing dead grow restless, the Age of Worms is at hand.”
“If things but were as they once had been, I would fulfill my duty as a Watcher and report all I know to the Order. However, this is no longer possible. The Order fled to their island-fortress of Tilagos almost 1500 years ago to avoid destruction at the hand of Kyuss' minions. There they are strongest and it is there they kept the greatest bulk of their lore. It is said that they built a library of sorts there that houses hundreds of years of history, memories, dreams and secrets as a last bastion of knowledge against the Age of Worms. Of course, merely fleeing to an ocean fortress would not ensure their safety. It is said that the Order drove a lasting bargain with primal elemental forces. They sacrificed their lives to whisk the island's interior off the Material Plane. In its place is a barren rock surrounded by an ever raging storm of such intensity that that any ships that approach within ten miles are invariably lost. The island appears on no maps, but lore maintained by the Watchers hints that the druids left a way for those in need to reach their secrets while at the same time warding the place away from the eyes of Kyuss' undead fanatics.”
“Fate has left us to deal with the rising of the Wormgod. But it is fate as well that seems to have placed heroes capable of the task here with me, in the very hour of our need. It seems obvious that Dragotha intends to release Kyuss from his prison and in so doing usher in the Age of Worms. The solution is also obvious. A king without his general is powerless. It has taken Dragotha 1500 years to reach this point. If he can be removed now, it will certainly be centuries before anyone or anything has a chance to release the Wormgod again. Of course, you cannot follow Balakarde into the Wormcrawl Fissure, one does not simply attack a dracolich without forethought. Dragotha may not know where the Order of the Storm hid his phylactery but that does not mean it is not useful to him. If he is destroyed before his phylactery is found, it is as good as turning it over to him. "
“The first order of business must be to find his phylactery and destroy it. I have no idea where it may be hidden but then again neither does Dragotha. Certainly his doubt to its location is the main reason he has not tried to simply destroy himself as a desperate way to discover it. It has undoubtedly been secreted away by the Order of the Storm for this very need, either on the isle of Tilagos or elsewhere. Furthermore, if a written account of what Tylanthros did with the phylactery exists, it must be somewhere within the library. It is my fervent hope that you will take up this task, travel to Tigalos, and uncover the lore that the Order of the Storm gave their lives to hide from the world.”
<Lashonna ends her tale and pauses for another drink to allow the party to ask questions>
Not bad, not bad at all. I like it for one of my groups. The other group does not have the patience for me to talk for that long, but I can truncate it once I see them starting to lose interest.
One thing I noticed was that I, as the DM, had access to information that is not presented to the PC's. I have incorporated ways to share that information through gather information checks, and random NPC's.
I really like your speech, it is well written. The problem though with long, prepared speeches, in my opinion, is that the execution of them at the gaming table can be a bit unnatural. The DM tries to stick to his speech by using his notes, which makes the interaction less natural. So if you come up with a good way to deal with that, the speech should be great.
|
|
I really like your speech, it is well written. The problem though with long, prepared speeches, in my opinion, is that the execution of them at the gaming table can be a bit unnatural. The DM tries to stick to his speech by using his notes, which makes the interaction less natural. So if you come up with a good way to deal with that, the speech should be great.
Yeah too true. The speech in the module as written is shorter but I think it leaves so much up in the air that the conversation afterward would be much harder. Nevertheless you still raise a fair point.
I ran this speech last week and it worked very well. To break up the text, I studied the speech carefully and made frequent eye contact with the players while finishing sentences. I also paused when Lashonna took a drink in the story to take one of my own so as to maintain a sense of in-character-ness while wading through the text. I believe these small touches kept the story from seeming long. I read the entire thing aloud in about 4 minutes. Everyone sat in rapt attention and/or made notes. Best of all, they did not even question Lashonna's role in the AoW to date, they accepted everything she had to say, so focused were they on the details of the story.
Oh, I went back over Lashonna's part as written today and found this gem...
"Balakarde's journal, or what's left of it, in any event. You'll see he is quite mad. Obsessed, the poor dear, and with worms no less. Tiresome..."
I mean come on if this doesn't scream "I am a traitor" to the party, nothing will. Lashonna was supposed to be a mover and a shaker in Alhaster, knowledgeable enough about the Ebon Triad and the Age of Worms that a powerful wizard like Balakarde obsessed with the AoW would seek her out for advice. She is supposed to be tough enough to have battled against the cult for decades and well-known enough to show up as an entry in Rhorsk's book on Alhaster. Given all of this, is this how she should treat Balakarde's concerns? It just doesn't hang. Running her as written will get every party thinking she is Mother Maggot and will give them enough cause to investigate her and learn her true nature. Her betrayal will hardly mean a thing later on.
Gah I am ranting again. I am glad a few of you liked the story. Thanks for reading.
|
|
Sorry for the double post, but I forgot to mention something. My group was considering destroying the ziggurat before leaving Alhaster. I think they were planning on hitting it with disintegrate spells (the two casters in my group can cast 17 disintegrates in one day without resorting to items, enough to remove 17 10' cubes from the ziggurat. Collapse? Probably. Cause it to crumble and lean? Oh yes.) While the angels *might* get there to stop them, I didn't want to handle a protracted battle with the angels that very well could result in the party getting stomped. The modified story above allowed me to improvise a good answer to their questions regarding it. Lashonna only needed to say that Alhaster and the ziggurat yet had a role to play in the Age of Worms but her divinations would not tell her whether it was for good or ill. Given the uncertainty, she did not want to move against Zeech's building of the thing for fear she would unknowingly be tampering with the unfolding of a prophesy. I used this reason as well to respond to questions why she never tried to help the downtrodden in Alhaster; her role was one of observer and reporter, to do more would be to expose herself to Kyuss' minions that still roamed free or would again be interfering in what yet may come to pass.
It worked for my group, at least :)
Nice to hear your speech turned out so well. It is always fulfilling when a long preparation works out perfectly. Kudos for that.
I also liked the way in which you handled the ziggurat destruction plans. My players wanted to do the same thing in my campaign, but luckily they never got around to it. I do think that lots of parties at least consider this, I even wonder if some did. That would certainly have required some improvisation on the part of the DM. You always have the library of last resort story following, which might give the DM the opportunity to insert a time jump (time on the island goes slower than in the real world, bringing the PCs back a year or even more later. During this time the forces of Kyuss might have done even more than just rebuild the ziggurat ...
In my campaign the PCs found out quite quickly that Lashonna was 'a bad guy' (although not until after the Prince of Redhand). In retrospect that was not a good thing. Try postponing the 'truth' as long as possible. I would have liked to have seen my players' faces when they were confronting Dragotha and heard him throw the truth in their faces. The longer they go for the 'Lashonna is our ally' part of the story, the better.