Here it is: The PCs enter a town, they know at least 1 person in town is a kidnapper. I want to have them talk to the residents and discover who it is like a mystery. I don't want my bad guy to blow it because he messed his bluff check when they ask him, "did you do it?" that'd be horrible.
What are some ways to encourage solving the mystery rather than just busting in and beating people?
This will be the first adventure for two 1st level PCs, I don't know what classes they will be or anything else, except I've asked them to be non-evil. It's set just outside of Waterdeep in FR (I don't use much FR flavor because I don't know much, but I'm not against it)
The townspeople thus far are: inn keeper, blacksmith, priest, merchant, town drunk, retired adventurer, hunter.
It's a small town, so I think that could be enough, but any more characters could be useful.
Also, is it too obvious who's doing it based solely on their professions?
Anything you have to say would be useful, and I can give more info if needed, thanks.
Use red herrings. Don't have the initial evidence lead to one person.
Give them several different likely possibilites to puzzle out, then give more details as they go.
Use red herrings. Don't have the initial evidence lead to one person.
Give them several different likely possibilites to puzzle out, then give more details as they go.
That's not a bad idea, I was toying with the idea of making them weary of the merchant because he has a large cart and regularly goes to the city. I just don't see it going anywhere beyond "I look at the cart, nothing? Moving on."
Some representation of law enforcement might be useful, someone that shows that just beating up random people will have consequences and also to hand the kidnapper over to.
I'm thinking each of your major npcs here need a secret of some sort (or at least an acivity that looks slightly suspicious at first glance). A few others know of it as a rumour (ie very little and possibly inaccurately). One person knows more (but it still looks suspicious) and only interrogating/following the suspect reveasl the truth. Feel clever by inserting subtle clues that would indicate innocence from kidnapping that look obvious after the reveal.
Cheers
Mark
first of all, make sure your players like this kind of playing, last time I entered a town my group moaned "oh no, not a town adventure".
Anyway, perhaps make a few people look guilty.
The merchants car could have bars and be soundproof by the "silent" spell. If the group looks further, that could be so thieves won't steal anything or the merchant could need that as his private chambers.
Or the brothel could have got new girls, some that look like the kidnapped ones but they say they wanted to come. (dominate person or something) And the group mage has to figure out to dispel the magic, but only if he is sure that it's the missing girls. Because dispelling well-made (and expensive) magic in town could be illegal.
Hope it helped.
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Agreed. One of my current PCs is a lawyer, so I've been working on DMing investigations...
Just remember that in the movies, it sometimes seems like anyone could have committed the murder.
The inkeeper, for example, has a great opportunity; he's the only one with the keys to a bunch of rooms where people are sleeping unsuspectingly. Maybe make him a bit creepy.
The priest could be rumored to be a necromancer.
The hunter could be gruff and standoffish and refuse to answer the PCs' questions.
In the end, my experience is that no matter how painfully obvious you make it, they are going to assume the obvious murderer is a red herring and not even bother. And they're probably going to suspect someone the evidence doesn't really even point to.
A couple quick hints:
1.) The Rule of Three - You'll need to plan three clues leading to any important scene or suspect. They'll likely miss the first two.
2.) Even Herrings Give Information - Run them around with red herrings, but let them learn some relevant information as they pursue the red herring. "Yeah, he wus foolin' with the Innkeeper's daughter, but the old man worked it out wit' him. Them two wuz gonna get married! Guard Cap'n Dredluck wasn't any too happy 'bout it, either. He wuz still awful sweet on the girl."
Make sure you account for their skills (or lack there of). If you have 2 players who have human fighters with 1 ranks in ride and thats it, then your investigation has to be set up very differently then if you have an inquisiter with an 18 int, and skill focus diplomacy/sense motive. Beware also of magic. At level 1 it isnt much of a concern but eventually 'investigation' is made trivial by divination magic.
One important thing is to make sure more then one character has something to hide. Maybe its not the murder, maybe the shopkeep has a smuggling operation. That way the players even if they are skilled at diplomacy and sense motive will have more then one person to investigate.
This sounds like fun :) Can I come?
A big thing to help avoid bluff check "failures"/mission enders is for them to not actually be able to question the person who did it.
The kidnapper is in someone's basement/attic/barn/outbuilding and has some heavy information on the owner. The owner doesn't necessarily know why the blackmailer wants to be left alone in whatever place- but he knows he doesn't want the information coming out so he does his job.
Shopkeep, blacksmith, mayor.. they are all fully susceptible to blackmail due to adultery especially with someones younger daughter or wife. (not pedophelia- just younger).
Have them actually be ignorant of what is going on. that way no one is actually lying. The most the PC's can figure out is that something isn't right.. and you can have that with multiple NPC's. Then you just toss in clues to let the PC's find out that someone came into town in the night a few days ago but the Inn is empty and such, and subtly point clues towards the actual black mailer.
Detect evil, detect lies, detect.. whatever, they'll still be stuck doing old fashioned investigatory work to figure it out. And they may even have fun in the process.
-S
You guys are awesome! Some really good stuff that I'm going to take into account. I'm running it tomorrow, so I'll probably be up late working out all these details and adding new characters.
I'm starting to find that this kind of adventure is actually really fun just to design and I hope it's as much fun for the players. This will also be a big change from "the dungeon is filed with orcs, go", which I think the others will enjoy.
Thanks again, and I'll check back again to see if anyone has anything else.
I have a couple of additional suggestions:
First, you might want to set up a simple subplot, giving the players a "win", even if the main mystery defies them.
As an example, perhaps one of the locals brutally abuses his family. His wife wants to flee the village with their infant child, but fears her husband's retaliation. The PCs stumble across clues of this abuse while following the larger mystery. If they choose to, they can help the wife. She then shares some clue toward the main mystery. (Perhaps the main villain once offered to "help" her, but she didn't accept his offer. Not suspecting his sinister motives, she dodged a terrible fate.)
Also, make a roster of a dozen or so NPCs and a few locations. These will become your "supporting cast" when the plot veers off in some unexpected direction. This minimizes the need to improvise during the game session, making the game go smoother and keeping the players from feeling railroaded. If the players ask something unexpected, you just plug in someone from the roster.
Example NPCs
Taria Fellinca - Tall, graceful woman, mid-40s. Feels stifled in small town: saving money so she can go to Waterdeep.
Bolre Broadriver - Sturdy halfling with waist-length blonde hair.
Vain about his appearance.
Scarborr - Half-orc indentured servant. Recently converted to worship of Tempus.
Ernst Claypipe - Stout Moonshae islander with a hoarse voice. He dresses in tan.
Example Locations
The Old Vicker Barn - Sagging old barn where village teens secretly gather to smoke, drink, and "spark".
Leyio's Herbal - Low stone hut owned communally by several farm families. It's filled with herbs and half-done herbal preparations to be taken to a larger town for sale at their twice-monthly market.
The Thicket - Once a massive hedge maze, abandoned when the wealthy merchant who built it passed away. The restless spirit of a minotaur is said to haunt its overgrown paths.
Wulf, when I read your post I suddenly realized I forgot to think of physical descriptions for ANY of the characters. You just saved me big time. Also I was wondering what kind of clues there could be for the abused wife idea, I like it but I'm not sure I know how to implement it.
I was thinking it could be the wife of the hunter whose son was the first to go missing. I think it would help to put a little more 'pressure' on him as a suspect.
Anyway, I'm off to bed for tonight, but I've still got a few hours in the morning to prepare.
Thanks again, everyone!
Wulf, when I read your post I suddenly realized I forgot to think of physical descriptions for ANY of the characters. You just saved me big time. Also I was wondering what kind of clues there could be for the abused wife idea, I like it but I'm not sure I know how to implement it.
A family suffering terrible abuse might generally act furtive and ashamed. The wife might be terrified of being seen talking to any man but her husband. A DC 15 Heal check might notice bruises or other injuries the wife is trying to conceal.
I was thinking it could be the wife of the hunter whose son was the first to go missing. I think it would help to put a little more 'pressure' on him as a suspect.
Sounds good: The situation sounds like a solid red herring, which could then give the PCs a clue to steer them onto the right track.
The son's disappearance would also give a good reason for the hunter to be even more abusive than normal: Stresed out by the disappearance (and suspecting other villagers' gossip), he takes his frustration out on his wife.
The wife had always put up with his abuse, fearing what would happen if she leaves. THer husband's recent savagery has her worried that he'll kill her.
Thanks for all the help. I'll be running this in a couple hours and so some last minute prep is in order. Wish me luck!
Thanks for all the help. I'll be running this in a couple hours and so some last minute prep is in order. Wish me luck!
How did it go?
How did it go?
Hey, thanks for the interest!
It went amazing! Unfortunately the adventure went on longer than planned and so we decided to pick it up again this weekend. Basically the PCs spent the main portion of the session talking to different NPCs and forming their opinions on the people of the town. They thought they had the answer a few times, but talking to another other NPC would make them change their minds. I think I may have thrown in too many red herrings. They don't seem to know who did it or why yet. They're still investigating though.
As the session ended they were torn between the hunter and I think the merchant and they were just about to investigate the inn keeper further. I'm so excited to see my players thinking about this stuff. It's just such a huge departure from the "go in dungeon and kill" games we usually play.
The PCs are a Rogue and a Monk. I think I may have trouble designing good combat encounters around just 2 PCs and they're these classes, but I haven't really decided where to take the campaign afterwards.
They thought they had the answer a few times, but talking to another other NPC would make them change their minds. I think I may have thrown in too many red herrings. They don't seem to know who did it or why yet. They're still investigating though.
Look for opportunities to inject clues that steer them from the red herrings toward the true culprit. As an example, they might overhear one of the red herrings talking fearfully about the true suspect.
As the session ended they were torn between the hunter and I think the merchant and they were just about to investigate the inn keeper further. I'm so excited to see my players thinking about this stuff. It's just such a huge departure from the "go in dungeon and kill" games we usually play.
To vary the pace, a fight or action scene might be in order. Perhaps the villain strikes where the heroes are expected to rest, such as blocking the exits and setting the structure on fire. Alternatively, an aggressive bull might be "accidentally" released into a meadow or country lane where the PC are travelling. A speak with animals potion could be used to encourage the animal to specifically target the adventurers.
The PCs are a Rogue and a Monk. I think I may have trouble designing good combat encounters around just 2 PCs and they're these classes, but I haven't really decided where to take the campaign afterwards.
You might want to inject some seeds of the next game into this game's finale. As an example, a local nobleman might covertly send a few men to check out the local disappearances, arriving too late to deal with the investigatiion, but not too late to learn of the heroes' achievement.
To vary the pace, a fight or action scene might be in order. Perhaps the villain strikes where the heroes are expected to rest, such as blocking the exits and setting the structure on fire. Alternatively, an aggressive bull might be "accidentally" released into a meadow or country lane where the PC are travelling. A speak with animals potion could be used to encourage the animal to specifically target the adventurers.
Well one thing they managed to do was piss off the hunter by going behind his back and talking to his wife when he forbade it. I haven't done anything with this yet but I wonder if perhaps it could lead to something such as burning the inn they're staying in. I think that would add some diversity to the adventure and maybe they'd even have something else to investigate, even if only for themselves.
One thing they managed to do was piss off the hunter by going behind his back and talking to his wife when he forbade it. I haven't done anything with this yet but I wonder if perhaps it could lead to something such as burning the inn they're staying in. I think that would add some diversity to the adventure and maybe they'd even have something else to investigate, even if only for themselves.
I picture a scene where the hunter shows up at the inn late at night, angry, stinking drunk, and looking to "teach them meddlers to mind their own business." He brings his favorite hound with him, a massive mutt somewhere between a dog and a war dog. The innkeeper tries to get him to leave, but the hunter quickly beats him unconscious.
During the brawl, a couple of oil lamps are thrown about, spreading lamp oil around the inn's common room. In their rooms, the PCs are given Perception checks to wake up during the brawl. The checks get easier when the hunter starts kicking open doors, looking for them. When they leave their rooms, they get in a brawl with the drunken lout and his dog. The spilled oil ignites as they fight the fool, quickly spreading into a deadly conflagration.
Use the opportunity to have the true villain show up to help fight the fire. This good deed could then give the PCs a clue to his hidden crimes as he overlooks some incriminating item on his wagon or obvious inconsistency in his reason for being there at the right time. If the innkeeper is the culprit, the fire might reveal evidence hidden in the inn.
I'm eager to know how this session went!
I'm eager to know how this session went!
Sorry for the long silence. I should explain that the three of us (my group and I) are running rotating campaigns, each of us DMing a different campaign each weekend. The last time a session ended before the adventure, we finished it up the following Friday first thing, before we started the regular campaign for that weekend. I thought we would be doing that again with mine, however the players both thought that it was better to wait and spend a weekend on it rather than try to hastily finish up my adventure in an afternoon and I agreed. I meant to post again sooner, but I went out of town for a few days on short notice and among other things managed to forget about you :(. So anyway, we went around and now it's actually my weekend again this weekend coming.
In summary, we haven't had another session of my adventure yet, but it will be happening again in a couple days.
Also you might be interested to know that I do intend to go with your fire idea. Tweaked just right to, hopefully, shed some light on the villain. At this point I still feel like I haven't offered up enough clues to point to the correct person. The hunter will start the fire in a drunken act of rage against them and I may have them fight him in the burning inn. Also, it seems like the PCs are looking to add the Inn keeper to their party, she's a half elf fighter. I told them when we started that I wasn't giving them any DMPCs but also that they could get help if they wanted to. I say that, because I was thinking that if the inn burned down she'd have less reason to stick around and she's already established as wanting to leave the town.
More suggestions are always welcome, but I feel like I'm rambling here so I'll cut it short, haha.