Where to insert missing family members?

[Lee Hanna]

Two of my players-to-be have already started working up backgrounds as well as class/level builds for Kingmaker. I like to ensure that unresolved threads that the players give me will get addressed sooner or later in the game.

One has given me the thread that her mother, a Dreamspun Sorceror, has disappeared in recent years. I was immediately reminded of an earlier thread in which someone was going to use a PC's lost mother at one of the castle ruins, placing an "advance copy" of "Zuddiger's Picnic" there. I'll probably run with that-- mom literally following her dreams to a doom caused by Nyrissa, and daughter has the opportunity to right the wrong-- but I'm open to suggestions.

Now, player #2 has given me two somethings, and I'd like to throw it open for comments. One was a feud between his PC (not quite noble birth), but as a squire-equivalent, he beat up two arrogant noble sons, who are now rivals or enemies. The other is that his own two brothers are missing, perhaps in the Stolen Lands, perhaps in a recent civil war.

I was originally thinking of having the arrogant nobles show up in the Stag Lord's Fort. The missing brother(s) have me stumped for now. Where might I have these guys discovered? Dead or alive? Enemies or allies?

I'd like at least one of them to show up soon (like within the first module), and something valuable should come of it. This is so that my players can see, early on, that I really do pay attention to their background homework, and that I will reward them for it. I hope that can be used to increase their investment in the world, their PCs, and the game.

[Waiwode]

The Sorceress:
There are a number of ruins where the mother could be -- and if you're willing to wait a long time there are a couple places in the last three chapters that would serve well. There aren't a lot of great places in the first module -- unless you want to insert one.

The nobles:
Well, there is always Restov. Obviously the focus of the game isn't the big city, but there are always reasons to send them there -- once the first chapter is complete going to pick up the second charter gives you opportunity for all kinds of intrigue.

The missing brothers:
Although we only meet a couple trappers (like Breeg), there have to be some. Depending how woodsy the missing brothers were, there's lots of room one or both of the brothers to be working as trappers in the region. Or perhaps they've panning for gold in a creek near where the gold vein lies -- finding the brothers may in fact help the group find the gold vein.

[Drejk]

My proposal: make one of the missing brothers a bandit, and the other one member travel west or south... to become denizen of Pitax and member of court/military there. Either he'll end as an enemy or insider for PC.

Nobles could be part of Varn's and Dreleb's retinues.

[Lee Hanna]

Thanks, I will cogitate upon those ideas.

[Lee Hanna]

Picking up a dormant thread: I had Akiros become one of the missing brothers. One or two bandits who were captured remarked on the similar looks between the cavalier and that bandit sub-leader, so he called out his brother from the fort. Staggy was too bombed to care, so brother (now Anatoli) came out to parley. They convinced him to defect then and there, and the rest is history.

As for the missing mother: I've had that character receive mom's journal, and is soon to discover some magically-hidden notes. These will not detail much about the Stolen Lands, but will reveal that mom (and Dad) were adventurers themselves, secretly seeking Ovinrbane for the previous Tsar-- and mom was even-more-secretly hunting for Briar. I think there will be a 2nd journal (the first one was left behind when she went on her second expedition, of course), perhaps with the marked-up copy of "Zuddiger's Picnic," found somewhere later. Like in Drelev's castle, since that guy (and/or his wizard brother-in-law) is also on the hunt for those magic swords.