I’ve got a short adventure idea that I wanted to share with you all. First off, pre-gen to begin with. Or alternatively, I might throw this at my current party, after the next arc is finished. Anyway, on to the setting.
The party will be starting at level 2, and choose their chars from this list. 3.5 classes, but this could work for pathfinder easily enough. Depends who I am running it for.
A marshal emphasising the polearm. A leader with a background of very mixed former employers, walking the line of good and evil.
A samurai, mixed bow and melee. A fine shot.
A rogue, specialising in simple trap construction and the heavy crossbow. This chap is a friend of one of the others, and was brought in after the mission was accepted.
A barbarian, a big hitter with harpoons. Notorious monster hunter.
A cleric, faith not sorted out yet.
A warlock. Not running out of spells make this odd fellow a great asset.
The setting is this, it is an attack on a hobgob keep, far from civilisation. Start as they enter the theatre of conflict. Going to have pretty harsh terrain, choke-points, some traps, local monsters in the surrounding woods, so movement is not free and easy. A really ample reward is in the offering. Rescue the damsel, kill the hobs, simple mission. Just like other missions, except this one offers real money bags. Will allow the good life for years! They have been given a magic ring so they can report what transpires when done.
So a good ol’ dungeon bash. They will take the keep, take some hobs hostage and find that alas the damsal/important person is dead. Calling it in, they are told that their reward will arrive soon, a cart of filthy lucre, and please clean up the castle for an additional 300gp (which they are given then) and meet the cart out front. Hur hur hur. So far, this is all they have been paid, but the hobgobs had a fair bit of loot.
It is, a double-cross. A team of adventurers larger than theirs is sent then to kill them. The wider area is cordoned off, because it is cheaper to move some soldiers and pay them to watch the roads, than it is to pay the ample reward to the adventurers. The betraying employer also has his eye on the loot of the hobgobs, and doesn’t like loose ends.
The army are told a lie, that the party are rebels, impoverished kidnappers desperate to satisfy their wishes. They have killed the fair lady and the agent sent to deliver the ransom. The army are obedient to their employer anyway. Once the clean-up crew of adventurers fail, the problem starts to become a larger one. More become deployed, knights too. Yet, the region is perfect for ambush, and counter-ambush. I am thinking sharp stone hills, deep forest gullies. Unpleasant, but you can live off it, and make people pay to enter it. With the trapmaker rogue and the others in support, the place can be made a deathtrap, but their enemies are numerous and wont be easily killed. There is also the matter of the captured hobgoblin samurai.
Players will get to play on the defence for once. The end game is breaking out of this area, or completely wiping out the surrounding forces or turning them against their liege (and also into rebels, so not so likely).
Thoughts?
Also a friend suggested natural exploding plants in the surrounding environment. That sounds hilarious. Very Catachan.
There is also exploding cacti in 3.5 and Dark Sun.
Wasn't sure where to put it Jim, that sounds good. Can I get it moved?
Flagged it to be moved.
Nothing. lol.
Well, what were you expecting? You have everything planned out it seems, and weren't asking any questions. So we thought:
...
And we're curious to hear how it worked out.
Hasn't started yet. Looking for added ideas.
Yep. Allowing for them to blast all day, and I am thinking of some real long battles planned, if they can keep their hp up.
You converted it, or are you trying to use it as is?
If you have converted it, can I see the conversion?
Cheers Chris.
Hmmm. Just to be clear, this is in the ideas phase. Came up with it yesterday. It occurred to me that there won't be much work behind it exactly. Conversion will be very easy. As in, I'll draw up some of the hobgob sam (3.5) and hob monks, anyone running something similar could use hobgob sam and monks from pathfinder or nick some suitable stuff from Jade Regent and use that.
For the hobs, will have warrior ashigaru, not sure if they should use certain types of monsters, or the monsters be an outside of the keep in the dark forest affair. Suggestions welcome.
By all means steal the idea guys, if you want to try it.
If they try to escape too early, can also make certain areas filled with monsters, to push them around horror movie style. Ankhegs, killer plants, a field of explosive plants blocking a clear exit between two mountain passes.
Now where it might get complex, is when it all goes to hell. The pcs dig in, cause real casualties. Killing the first wave of agents and others, and perhaps even allying with the captured hobgoblins, if they haven't been killed. The plan to knock them off and balance the books from the evil lord they were working for, has now led to so much pie on the face of this lord. He has to pull out all the stops, so for a time, heroes and badasses will show up to kill them and claim the bounty. Because at this stage, they are rebels in a keep killing all who approach to bring them to justice. So the feudal country thinks.
This then means, conjurers bringing in more monsters, and various heroes attempting to bash their brains in. So knights, fighters, prob not barbs, groups with good teamwork. There are a lot of well made characters out there and parties, so I'll scout around and grab these. That is the idea anyway.
If they keep succeeding, this will eventually slow and stop. There will be down time, no one magically teleports a contingent of men to wipe them out. Lowish magic after all, and no one of level 18+ gets involved. After a time, the party will have won or perished. Their tactics and combats leading to their success or failure. It will be a bloodbath for sure.
There is also the question of the captured hobs. Are they allowed to fight for the pics? How many are there, and how fast do they level?
On escape, in a way the easiest way to win the game, is to punch out and through the soldiers early. There will be at this time, too many to kill (probably) and ranger archers as well, but if a party member sacrificed themselves the rest could escape. Shortly after this opening, elites arrive, that is why it is the weakest point in the plan.
I also may have been playing too many tower defence games of late. :D
Getting a crew together, this might just begin soon!
First game is tomorrow, brief them on the mission, in they go, some monster bashing and end the game as they reach the castle, probably.
IT has begun, woot! They are hacking through monsters, hiking into the taken region, and have caught sight of the castle.
and have caught sight of the castle.
"Camelot!"
"Camelot!""Camelot!"
"...it's only a model."
(sorry 'bout that)
The undergrowth will lunge at them, long before they get to the castle.
They've found the shrubbery!
Shrubbery of limb-tearing.