The Gladiator theme was one of the best campaigns that my group has ever done. Essentially we had a travelling gladiator caravan that went from down to town. One of the favorites we had was an event wall "Sh*$ in the Pit" where a gladiator had to survive 8 rounds with a bullete.
The gladiator theme was also done in Age of Worms adventure path to the delight of my players. Even though it has been done though, I think everyone can dive into it. It is familiar, which means it is accessable. Not everyone will enjoy plane travel (although personally I'd love to see that) or dragons left right and center. I think you could easily combine gladiators with the " Guild of Misfits" idea that Mr. McBribe mentioned earlier. The only problem will be expanding that out of the arena which is a must but very much doable. Ultimately, its impossible to find a concept that everyone will go "Wow, that's AMAZING" but I think gladiators would be a good and safe way to go.
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I think gladiators as slaves might be hard to do. But gladiators as sports team? That might work:
Part 1: Prove Thyself - the party needs sponsorship from the nobility to qualify for the official city tournament. We first meet the PCs rivals, and the PCs earn a patron. Features: Street fights, dungeon quest, social quest for noble patronage.
Part 2: C-Grade - As the PCs join the lowest rung of the gladiator's pit, they face off against fantastic monsters and rival gladiators. Meanwhile other teams take advantage of a performance enhancing drug. The PCs will need to track the source and shut it down hinting at a larger conspiracy.
Part 3: Unrest - The city is rapidly being divided between rich/poor, slave/freemen. The PCs are approached by their patron AND friends they've made in the pits. Who will they favour? Will the PCs ignite the unrest or suppress it?
Part 4: B-Grade - More fantastic monsters and undead gladiators! Someone is dishonouring the dead and the PCs will need to defeat a necromancer and his teams of dead champions.
Part 5: Revolution? - The city is on the verge of complete revolution will the PCs be champions of the status quo or bringers of revolution?
Part 6: A-Grade - This is it, where champions are made The Final Dungeon, the PCs their rivals and horrid monsters are sent into the ultimate deadly trap filled dungeon. All the blood spilled in the arena has awakened something terrible and the PCs will need to defeat it to save the very soul of their city.
1)Dwarves reclaiming a fallen kingdom.
2)Dragon big bad. Behind the scenes at first progressing to seeing half dragons,various reptilian monsters and lesser dragons.
3)Game of Thrones type game. Intrigue, raising armies, etc.
I love Spartacus actually. I've seen both seasons and the prequel.
Actually, I think there is a lot of potential in a gladiator adventure path.
Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
Spartacus is one of my favorite shows; I love to watch how the fortunes of the characters rise and fall in relation to one another, because they're tied so heavily together.
I think a gladiatorial campaign would need a cohesiveness to it throughout the adventures so it doesn't become this string of empty bouts. It's one of the things I like best about WotW. I wrote an outline for the first adventure for this kind of campaign, but I haven't gotten back to it. If anyone can write the heck out of it, it'd be Gary.
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I think gladiators as slaves might be hard to do. But gladiators as sports team? That might work:
Part 1: Prove Thyself - the party needs sponsorship from the nobility to qualify for the official city tournament. We first meet the PCs rivals, and the PCs earn a patron. Features: Street fights, dungeon quest, social quest for noble patronage.
Part 2: C-Grade - As the PCs join the lowest rung of the gladiator's pit, they face off against fantastic monsters and rival gladiators. Meanwhile other teams take advantage of a performance enhancing drug. The PCs will need to track the source and shut it down hinting at a larger conspiracy.
Part 3: Unrest - The city is rapidly being divided between rich/poor, slave/freemen. The PCs are approached by their patron AND friends they've made in the pits. Who will they favour? Will the PCs ignite the unrest or suppress it?
Part 4: B-Grade - More fantastic monsters and undead gladiators! Someone is dishonouring the dead and the PCs will need to defeat a necromancer and his teams of dead champions.
Part 5: Revolution? - The city is on the verge of complete revolution will the PCs be champions of the status quo or bringers of revolution?
Part 6: A-Grade - This is it, where champions are made The Final Dungeon, the PCs their rivals and horrid monsters are sent into the ultimate deadly trap filled dungeon. All the blood spilled in the arena has awakened something terrible and the PCs will need to defeat it to save the very soul of their city.
I like where this is going, and how it's laid out.
I think a AP where you play as the monsters would be a lot of fun.
Maybe a similar idea to YAFGC (NSFW) webcomic where all sorts of monster basically live in the underdark/megadungeon and its populated by Orcs, Harpies, Beholders, a Lich ect and you have to fend off adventuring hero parties and raid towns and eventually take over an entire kingdom. Dungeon Keeper as another source of inspiration for the idea
Just saw this thread and the “after Gen Con teaser” post, but in case you’ve not made up your mind or are still shopping for ideas for AP # 3 , some other thoughts …
Prequel to WoTW:
Good PC’s fighting to “forever” remove the scourge of evil from the land / world.
You know how it ends in many years (WoTW), but set the stage for what an “ideal” world they attempted to make.
Sub systems & key concepts of blue on blue combat, wanting to defeat without killing opponents, reformation & redemption, nobility of character vs. ends justifying the means, flavors of good alignments.
Curse of Prophecy:
PCs are the pawns of or opponents of one or more prophecies. They must either fulfill a prophecy or foil it, resulting in the fulfillment of destiny or the destruction of the power of prophecy forever.
Sub systems & key concepts of predestination vs. free will, divinations as a GM tool rather than player spoiler, the power of mind sets & disadvantages of foreknowledge. Jim Butcher Oblivion War type of thing.
Restoration of Civilization:
PCs were in some sort of stasis / magical effect (maybe petrified?) which ended up with them in the far future where generations have come and gone since the “Golden Years” of their civilization. The world has become a much more barbaric and horrible place and the PCs must use their knowledge of the past as well as other “civilizing” advantages to try to restore some semblance of civilization to the heirs of their long-lost kindom.
Sub systems & key concepts of law vs. chaos instead of good vs. evil, hubris & barbarism, restoration of magic & / or divinity, repeating past mistakes vs. learning from them, renewal of ancestral alliances / deals, attempting to live up to ideals rather than bowing to pragmatism.
Looking forward to seeing what you're planning...
-TimD
Restoration of Civilization:
PCs were in some sort of stasis / magical effect (maybe petrified?) which ended up with them in the far future where generations have come and gone since the “Golden Years” of their civilization. The world has become a much more barbaric and horrible place and the PCs must use their knowledge of the past as well as other “civilizing” advantages to try to restore some semblance of civilization to the heirs of their long-lost kindom.
Sub systems & key concepts of law vs. chaos instead of good vs. evil, hubris & barbarism, restoration of magic & / or divinity, repeating past mistakes vs. learning from them, renewal of ancestral alliances / deals, attempting to live up to ideals rather than bowing to pragmatism.Looking forward to seeing what you're planning...
-TimD
Hmm, the WotW Prequel could be interesting I suppose, but I think that last one interests me much more :D I've always loved post apocalyptic ones ever since my high school english teacher got me onto a couple of Australian authors in that vein. Would really like to see something like this.
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Hmm, the WotW Prequel could be interesting I suppose, but I think that last one interests me much more :D I've always loved post apocalyptic ones ever since my high school english teacher got me onto a couple of Australian authors in that vein. Would really like to see something like this.Restoration of Civilization:
PCs were in some sort of stasis / magical effect (maybe petrified?) which ended up with them in the far future where generations have come and gone since the “Golden Years” of their civilization. The world has become a much more barbaric and horrible place and the PCs must use their knowledge of the past as well as other “civilizing” advantages to try to restore some semblance of civilization to the heirs of their long-lost kindom.
Sub systems & key concepts of law vs. chaos instead of good vs. evil, hubris & barbarism, restoration of magic & / or divinity, repeating past mistakes vs. learning from them, renewal of ancestral alliances / deals, attempting to live up to ideals rather than bowing to pragmatism.Looking forward to seeing what you're planning...
-TimD
There was actually an anime series called Scrapped Princess that was based around the premise of a post-apocalyptic world. The thing was though, you had no idea that's what they were going for until you were halfway through the series. As bad as the series was, it was almost like Highlander: The Animated Series with Quentin MacLeod, the last of the MacLeods. Where a meterorite destroyed most of civilization, but some remnants of it still existed. So maybe a machine gun is considered an artifact, but it's got very little ammo left in existence. Or flying ships. Could even explain how clockwork golems with brains can exist. Artificial intelligence. Could even allow for new races like the original living constructs, the warforged, but be a variant on that. That would be an interesting campaign.
Hey idea pitchers,
I just thought I'd let you know first. The decision for Fire Mountain Games next adventure path has been made.
That's no reason to stop discussing APs by the way. I hope that AP2 will be so successful that by mid 2013 I'll be having to discuss what AP3 will be.
Regardless, the discussion here has been invaluable and I will say this -- somewhere in all this, if you take a couple of ideas and combine them together and twist them just little you will find our next major project.
No, I'm not announcing it yet. We're working on some preview art and ad copy and such things.
But by the end of the month, expect an announcement.
The quickest way to be kept informed is to like our facebook page.
Thanks for your input and thanks for your support.
Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
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Pretty pretty please... it it really necessary to advertise the monstrosity called Facebook even further?
^ That ^
*shrugs* Monstrosity or not, its a fine way to get out announcements to those who are interested. Regardless, announcements will also be made here, on ENWorld, on RPG.Net, and on our website.
So, you can stay Facebook free if you'd like.
Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
As it stands, Fire Mountain Games offers something that neither Paizo or any of the other "big little guys" in the third-party world are offering: APs for evil characters. I've been blessed, in my personal life, with a gaming group that can handle evil PCs maturely (and I'm sure I'm not alone in that), so I'd love to see Fire Mountain Games carve out a niche for themselves and produce a few more "wicked" Adventure Paths.
If Breaking Bad has taught us anything, it's that an evil protagonist is just as fun to root for (or against) and deserves as much success and character development as any other. MOAR EIVL.
Daron Woodson
Abandoned Arts
I really don't care what type of AP that Fire Mountain Games puts together. What would make me buy this AP would be including all the classes, races,rules,etc. from all the balanced 3rd party and of course Pathfinder rules that make this game and OGL the best out there.
I really don't care what type of AP that Fire Mountain Games puts together. What would make me buy this AP would be including all the classes, races,rules,etc. from all the balanced 3rd party and of course Pathfinder rules that make this game and OGL the best out there.
I'll bite.
What do you consider the balanced third party products?
Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
I didn't mean to place any negative conotations in what I posted, for I have plenty of third party material. My post was basically saying include third party products in your AP for as of now Paizo does not.
I didn't mean to place any negative conotations in what I posted, for I have plenty of third party material. My post was basically saying include third party products in your AP for as of now Paizo does not.
Oh, I didn't take it as at all negative. I didn't mean to imply otherwise.
I am genuinely curious which 3pp products would draw you to a book.
Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
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Pretty pretty please... it it really necessary to advertise the monstrosity called Facebook even further?
I can't quite understand this attitude. Facebook and twitter are great tools for small companies with limited budgets to hock their wares. It's also where I organise my pathfinder games or tell the stupid jokes I think of throughout the day at my terrible job. Facebook isn't the devil, and I'm enjoying FMG's previews and updates :-)
/threadjack
I have Frog God Games, Headless Hydra, Legendary Games, Raging Swan, Dreamscarred Press, and Rite Publishing products in my downloads and I can honestly say that I would have no problem with any of these companies'products being icluded.
thanks Guy
I love Frog God Games "Tome of Horrors" and in fact several of those monsters appear in "Way of the Wicked".
Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
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In a highly civilized game, War Masters would be a welcome addition, not to mention a new burnish on the "Support Bad Guy" model: He beats you about the head and face and all his minions do too!
In a "Dark Era of Superstition" campaign, Witch Hunters would make great nemeses.
As a long-time Dragonlance fan, an adventure that encouraged dueling Dragonriders would make me squee myself.
I have Frog God Games, Headless Hydra, Legendary Games, Raging Swan, Dreamscarred Press, and Rite Publishing products in my downloads and I can honestly say that I would have no problem with any of these companies'products being icluded.
I'm new here, so I'll forgive you for not mentioning me.
: P
My policy on third party material is this -- I own a lot. I am a regular consumer of 3pp material and there is much I enjoy. If I encounter any OGL material that could make my book better, I use it. No reason to reinvent the wheel.
But on the other hand, I do not set out with a quota of "I must reference three 3pp sources in this book". That's not the way my creative process works.
I start with a story and all mechanics must serve the goal of making the PCs the most important part of that story.
Regardless, thanks for your interest in Fire Mountain Games! More is definitely on the way.
Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
Well clearly if people want Dragons, you need to make a game focusing on lizardfolk and Kobolds going around and kidnapping Princesses for their Dragon master.
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I am genuinely curious which 3pp products would draw you to a book.Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
Little Red Goblin Games' Legendary Levels 1 and 2.
Dreamscarred Press's Psionics Unleashed and Psionics Expanded.
Super Genius Games' Time Thief, Godlings, Dragonriders, and having a campaign involving the main madman from The Vile Magic of Argonax the Mad.
Glenn Taylor Games' DragonCyclopedia: The Combatant.
Fat Goblin Games' Pyromancer.
Open Design's Midgard: Book of Drakes.
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I am genuinely curious which 3pp products would draw you to a book.Gary McBride
Fire Mountain GamesLittle Red Goblin Games' Legendary Levels 1 and 2.
Dreamscarred Press's Psionics Unleashed and Psionics Expanded.
Super Genius Games' Time Thief, Godlings, Dragonriders, and having a campaign involving the main madman from The Vile Magic of Argonax the Mad.
Glenn Taylor Games' DragonCyclopedia: The Combatant.
Fat Goblin Games' Pyromancer.
Open Design's Midgard: Book of Drakes.
These plus a few others that I wouldn't mind seeing added:
Anything by Purple Duck Games (namely the Legendary Item series)
Rite Publishing material
Open Design's Northlands and Divine Favor's (Cleric, Druid, Inquisitor) archetypes.
Adamant Entertainment - Tome of Secrets
Alluria Publishing: Remarkable Races
Aw. I can't believe I only saw this now. Not sure if you guys are still checking this thread but here's my pitch for the next AP after that.
All pulled together by mysterious forces, the characters are caught up in one of the skirmishes as Talingarde falls. All are gifted in one way or another (AP traits that scale with level), chosen by fate. Their first encounter propels them through worlds a cross between plane shifting, planet hopping, and time travel as an eminent apocalypse approaches. Through barren worlds, sprawling metropolises, and Elric the Eternal Champion inspired law/chaos worlds. Undertones of the coming destruction permeate every world as disasters strike (Talingarde as just the prequel to the end) and the characters struggle to uncover their destinies and save the multiverse. Perhaps an incorporation of the not-so-recently announced Mythic Adventures rules. An end that could be anything from the aforementioned Elric law/chaos apocalypse, a great cosmic alignment that will unleash a horde of Nightwaves, the awakening of the Tarrasque or even the rise of a dark god. Finish with the ultimate reward of true godhood becoming guardians of the multiverse.
20 levels.
High fantasy
Huge point buys
Powerful races
Epic heroes
All-powerful monsters
Unfathomable destiny
You have a destiny, discover it.
Well, hope you're like it.
Eventually, what I would love to see is a sequel to WotW, either expanding their evil empire, or the forces of good fighting back. Either way, I would love to see an expansion on their world to possibly a full out Campaign Setting. But it would of course have the greatest impact if they delayed it a little bit, maybe finish another adventure path or 2
I don't know if we'll ever do a sequel to "Way of the Wicked" but I'd like to. I have way too many ideas for villiany that I'm not able to fit in this AP.
Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
Check out our kickstarter! Creature Cards
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Eventually, what I would love to see is a sequel to WotW, either expanding their evil empire, or the forces of good fighting back. Either way, I would love to see an expansion on their world to possibly a full out Campaign Setting. But it would of course have the greatest impact if they delayed it a little bit, maybe finish another adventure path or 2I don't know if we'll ever do a sequel to "Way of the Wicked" but I'd like to. I have way too many ideas for villiany that I'm not able to fit in this AP.
Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
Check out our kickstarter! Creature Cards
Your idea of taking place generations later and expanding it to another continent was an awesome sounding idea.
Gary, back in August you said the announcement of the new AP would be made by the end of the month. Have you guys announced it, and if so what is it?
Someone to Pathfinderise/tidy up and enhance the epic Drow War campaign for 3rd ed levels 1-30. I heard this was forthcoming a couple of years ago but nothing has happened. The adventure was pretty good but lacked maps and needed tweaking. With mythic rules out next year now would be a good time to re-hash it.
Gary, back in August you said the announcement of the new AP would be made by the end of the month. Have you guys announced it, and if so what is it?
We have indeed -- Throne of Night. Basically its Kingmaker meets Descent into the Depths of the Earth.
You can learn all about it here.
Coming in early 2013.
Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
Check out our kickstarter! Creature Cards
I would love to see Way of the Wicked collected up into a deluxe hardback edition.
I would love to see the Big Black Book Edition of "Way of the Wicked".
Maybe some day. But for now paizo.com and DrivethruRPG remain the only ways to get Pathfinder's only evil adventure path.
Gary McBride
Fire Mountain Games
Check out our kickstarter! Creature Cards
NECROMANCY!
Good one. Let's gather new ideas...
A mythic-lite eastern AP with Indian & Asian inspired stuff that could be set by GMs in Tian Xia. Done by Legendary games for mythic monster, battle rules and general experience with pluggable Golarion support using Alex Augunas Asian race books, leadership rules and ultimate charisma rules. Fiction & story consulting by Dave Gross.
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My players are entering book 3 of way of the wicked.
I would really love to see an AP that expands WoTW into epic level play and then whatever the apex of that adventure becomes for those character, they literally become the arch villians of an AP that is set say 100 years later or more and you create heroes trying to undo all of it.
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This is definitely necromancing the thread.
My players are entering book 3 of way of the wicked.
I would really love to see an AP that expands WoTW into epic level play and then whatever the apex of that adventure becomes for those character, they literally become the arch villians of an AP that is set say 100 years later or more and you create heroes trying to undo all of it.
Gary's original plan was to do a sequel to this after Throne of Night, but neither happened in the end. Technically speaking, Ruins of Azlant is along the idea of what we likely would have gotten for a sequel. The descendants of the first campaign (assuming you don't pull the "bad ending" from Book 7) head out and try to expand their territory of evil.
I can't do a whole lot for epic, but I did do a series of blogs regarding each book, and how you could add on or expand upon what's already there.
Consider going here and here for some ideas that you can use to continue the story a little further. The PCs will definitely be higher than level 20 after all of that.
Necro indeed, but we're talking way of the wicked!
I may adapt a good aligned adeventure path someday with this ap's players as a council of wrath lol.
Would be quite a match again 5 level 20 player characters. :)
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Necro indeed, but we're talking way of the wicked!
I may adapt a good aligned adeventure path someday with this ap's players as a council of wrath lol.
Would be quite a match again 5 level 20 player characters. :)
We are talking about WotW, but Gary's not around any more. I guess a sequel could be written by anyone though. I was referring to the fact that this thread has died and been resurrected numerous times.
Probably the easiest way to adapt a good adventure would be to use the 3.5 template, Paragon Creature. That would make every character CR 15+. Beyond that, use the 3PP Mighty Creature template. At least with regards to minimal work. Unless you have the files available for the specific adventure path in question and Hero Lab, adding 20+ levels is tiresome and tedious. Templates for the win.
Beyond that, here are some 3.5 adventures you can convert to Pathfinder, and adjust to 20th level. I recently adapted War of Dragons for a home game that uses Pathfinder. Pathfinder black dragons are much smaller than 3.5 ones.
Level 18
Diplomacy (Dungeon #144)
Gates of Oblivion (Dungeon #136)
Kings of the Rift (Dungeon #133)
The Lich-Queen's Beloved (Dungeon #100)
Root of Evil (Dungeon #122)
Strike on Shatterhorn (Dungeon #115)
Vlindarian's Vault (Dungeon #141)
Wells of Darkness (Dungeon #148)
Force of Nature (DM Guild website)
War of Dragons (DM Guild website)
Prisoner of the Castle Perilous (Dungeon #153)
Level 19
Asylum (Dungeon #116)
Enemies of My Enemy (Dungeon #149)
Into the Wormcrawl Fissue (Dungeon #134)
Level 20
Dawn of a New Age (Dungeon #135)
Prince of Demons (Dungeon #150)
The Razing of Redshore (Dungeon #92)
Heart of Hellfire Mountain (Dungeon #140)
An Icy Heart (DM Guild website)
The Essence of Evil (WotC online Dungeon #152)
Level 21: Until the Starbreak(Oerth Journal 22)
Level 21-24: Storm Lord's Keep (Dungeon Magazine 93)
Level 22: The Sundered Spark (Oerth Journal 24)
Level 21-30: Quicksilver Hourglass (Dungeon Magazine 123)