Alright, so I am DMing a group of 7 characters that have managed to reach 6th level after our last session. The campaign started rough, with the party killing someone they accused of being part of a demonic cult without any evidence. They high tailed it out of town and adventured in some ruins. There they found this wicked looking axe being wielded by a kobold caster. After looting the place and walking back to town the Dwarven fighter who was carrying the axe started to have nightmares about it. They returned to town where a large parade was taking place for an adventuring party that exposed the sinister cult that had pervaded some of the town. While visiting a church in town they happened to stumble across the Paladin leader of the previously mentioned adventuring group. He detected the evil axe and demanded it to be turned over. Once in his possession something obviously changed and he rushed out of the church.
The axe was created by a duerrgar lich that worshipped Droskar. The axe is a dwarf bane axe (excluding duerrgar) with a variety of yet to be determined other abilities. Now the Paladin is under the control of the axe (very high ego) and has murdered the 2 dwarves in his adventuring party. The PCs don't know this yet, as they left town to investigate a nearby vineyard that has spread a fungal disease through its wine. On their way back to town they can see fires burning inside the town.
Now what? I really have no idea what to do with the story at this point. The two main plot points are that there is a hag coven in the swamp that wants to spread fungus everywhere and the Droskar lich who created the evil axe.
Now I can't decide if the fire is caused by the Paladin or if its just from the mayhem of people turning into shambling fungal beasts in the town.
I was considering the PCs making it back to town in time to see the Paladin about the executed. He would be mortified and have no recollection of what he did.
The PCs could also come back to town and have a showdown with the Paladin (probably ex paladin at this point, but not yet anti-paladin).
I am unsure what would be a good way to continue on with this plot point. I was planning on having him come back as a graveknight who protects the lich they keep hearing stuff about.
Thanks for the help guys/gals, and sorry for the semi-rambling post.
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The Paladin is not automatically an Ex-Paladin. He's being controlled, right? Was he trying to destroy the weapon or did he think he could control it when the take over occurred?
If the former, he was doing his duty and got tagged. Bummer, his guilt at what has happened is far more punishment (or should be)
If the latter, greed and hubris are the main evils he did.
OT RANT: Where's the Paladin's god? As all gods seem to measure the minutia of a Paladin's deeds, where is it to take away his powers but not help anyone else? But that's another story. Back to OT
If the Paladin is innocent or not really much more guilty of hubris, have them confront the Paladin. I'd say the fires are caused by the Paladin to spread death and discord, two of Evil's favorites in doing to "good areas"
If the Paladin is a willing servant, have the Paladin come back as you stated and take out those that "debased" his new friend and slaughtering companion
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It's easier to talk about what I wouldn't like.
As a PC having everything I do turn around and bite me in the butt is not fun.
Having npcs constantly being against us is not fun
That said, paladins are tough stuff and mental influence is pretty easy to notice for PCs. It would be a good idea to have the PCs have an obvious chance to help the paladin. If the artifact didn't overpower the PC idk why the paladin fell to it. Maybe draw that plot line out slower and give the pcs a chance to find the unknown murder and possibly save and atone the paladin. His church might be interested into the matter as well and maybe he flees to a larger settlement with more dwarves to kill.
Having the hag coven attack could be a great cover for the dwarf murders in town....it's a smart axe right?
@BB36
The Paladin (Bjorn the Goldhearted) is being controlled by the evil axe. He took the axe from the party with intent to destroy it, but he didn't get that far before being controlled.
The Paladin and the party had no idea it was sentient, let alone magical, only the Paladin's detect evil ability revealed this. He snatched it and it has 4-5 days since the party has been back in town. I figured he murdered both Dwarves and maybe his other adventuring companions as they defended their friends.
I am unsure what else he has done in this span of time. The first night was a celebration for the Pally and his party, but also the night he got the axe. Does he murder one Dwarf in his sleep and play innocent the next day, or does he just go on a bloody rampage around town slaying dwarves and anyone that gets in his way?
There is a mason's guildhall that could have been burnt by the Paladin, but that building is stone, so it seems unlikely.
If they confront the Pally would he have lost all of his Paladin abilities at this point? If not he wouldn't be too terrible of a challenge. This is why I was considering antipaladin. Perhaps he has collected Dwarves around town and is actually burning them in a sacrifice to the axe.
I also thought it would be an interesting role playing opportunity as the Paladin pleaded with the town that it wasn't his fault, while the town doesn't believe him after his atrocious actions.
@Genetic Drift
I had planned for the axe to immediately attempt to dominate any non-dwarf who wielded it. Fortunately for me only the Dwarven fighter touched the axe in the party. I was going to have it try and dominate a PC if they handled it. To play up its evilness I had them see dreams of an undead dwarf hammering away on an anvil in some evil forge.
The PCs immediately noticed something was wrong with the Pally, but didn't do anything to stop him from leaving. They also left town without doing a follow up on what he was doing which gave him many days to do as the axe pleases.
I had originally imagined the party selling the axe to some schmuck merchant in town who went around as a dwarven serial killer, but the axe ended up in the hands of a much more powerful npc, so I figured serial killing would be too subtle.
Yes the axe is sentient and I planned on having it slowly gain in power throughout the campaign until it reaches minor artifact status. That is unless the party can stop it firt
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Well OfStatic,
What alignment is the Axe? If it is CE, let the "Sly and Filet" begin. If it is LE, it has a purpose. If it is NE then whatever brings about the most hate, fear, death is the name of the game and if he can pin it on someone else, so much the better
The Paladin has no reason to have lost his powers if he is unaware of the crimes. If anything and he's unaware, the "nightmares" he's been having can be part of him thinking there's great evil and he has to destroy it. A great "Dr Jekyll and Mr Hide"
The Paladin would accept his role in the deaths and make amends when the facts and evidence pile up. If he is still unaware, then it is highly likely that he doesn't even realize he has the Axe.
It really all depends on what the goals of the Axe are and what the Paladin knows
I've been torn about the alignment honestly. It was crafted by a LE race, but with the purpose of slaying dwarves. Its purpose is to slay dwarves and send their souls to stoke the flames of his forge. Yet CE seems plausible as I was considering giving the axe the ability to cast protection from law.
NE may be the best way to go as it does have a blood lust for dwarves, yet it has this blood lust for a very specific purpose.
I was considering the town to be too enraged to accept his apology and only through PC intervention could they save him.
The Paladin would know nothing or everything. I am unsure if the best way to do it is to have the Paladin be trapped inside his own body, forced to watch these heinous acts unfold at his hands, or if he is blissfully unaware of the axes dominance, either he has absolutely no recollection of the events, or he believes he is actually slaying evil creatures.
Thanks for the help so far though. I really needed some help with ideas
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Well ofstatic,
Until you define what's going on in the world, I really can't help you.
My take:
Axe is NE, protects from good and Bane vs Dwarves
Paladin has no clue. He would think the Axe is something he "rescued" and it is not Evil, he has forgotten the went to destroy evil axe and vaguely remembers there was something evil he destroyed. Depending on how Wise (higher Int helps but not if his Int > Wis then he's headstrong) he is, those gaps can be used to break him of the hold or allow more saves vs the will of the Axe.
More holes in his memory means he will question the remaining memories. He'll begin to ask himself, "Just what did I destroy", "What do the dreams mean", "Does Charmin really feel better on my tush", etc, and the more he realizes it, the more likely he can break free.
The Axe is looking to slay EVERY Dwarf and won't go nuts unless it thinks it and his meat puppet can take all those who are around. It will do its best to make any carnage look like a blood feud between dwarves. After all, if you're designed to kill something, wouldn't it be prudent to know their weaknesses and how to keep them looking at each other?
You could easily expand on the Jekyll and Hyde scenario.
I beleive you said the paladin was unaware of the Axe's wrongdoings; only that the Paladin was taken over. You could have the Paladin/Axe dress up in disguise to perpetrate the slayings. The Paladin looking for the killer, and perhaps enlisting the aid of the Party ( who gave him the Axe ).
Meanwhile, Advancing the Hag Coven Plot, I would make the fires in town from that. Continue to Advance that Fungus Poisoning Plot.
Culminate the "adventure" with the party eventually finding out the Serial Killer they are looking for is in fact the Paladin ( who also comes to a self-realization, and perhaps falls to anti-paladin status ).
If you want a recurring Villian as you suggested with the Axe.. have either the Axe/Pally make his Escape at the end, or have the Axe make its separate escape to be picked up by someone else ( perhaps a climatic battle near a well, or cliff.. and ending with the pally throwing the axe into/over as a last dying act ).
Def liking the Jekyll and Hide aspect from Grollub. Have a lair where the axe has the paladin hide it and a disguise for when he sleeps. The paladin is having these nightmares (actually watching thru his own eyes as the Axe uses him to kill dwarves)but he feels that they are visions from his god with clues as to who the killer is. Since the things he is seeing are taking place AS they happen, he's never had the chance to "catch" the criminal in the act.
You may even want to give the pally a whole different set of skills to show the Axe as the controller? It uses him as an assassin or barbarian rather than as a Paladin and it has it's own skills and abilities that it uses thru him? That'd make it harder to track the killer to the bearer.
Wow guys, great ideas. BB36 I really like the idea of causing dwarves to feud with each other. The ability to cast disguise self should help make this possible.
I think the idea of fighting near a cliff is also an excellent idea, but I was going to give the item the ability to teleport 1/day which also increases the items ego.
The dream idea Bltzkrg is freaking awesome. I'm totally going to use that.
Also thanks for the idea of making the fires part of hag coven plot.
So perhaps when they get back to town they find the paladin trying to save a bunch of dwarves from a burning building. The PCs come to help, only to realize that these dwarves died from neither fire, nor smoke inhalation, but rather axe wounds.
I had considered the axe raising dwarves it slayed as undead minions, and that it grew in power the more dwarf blood it spills. Going from a battle axe to a great axe and steadily gaining more and more enhancements/intelligent item/special purpose abilities.