so the Players have gotten to the height of the blood veil, from the description at the vaults of abadar , they figure out it has to have something to do with money. They return to the soldoto house and question the girl, and hear the story where she finds the money.
Deducing that the ship held the money, they are round about assuming it was done on purpose (havent come to a clean conclusion on that) and..ultimately, have no interest in searching the sunken ship.
Instead, where they have been avoiding The Order of the Nail conflict, they have taken to jumping Patrols of Gray Maidens and Doctors in the Streets! Yarg!
They ignored the decree at first, ignored the first platoon of maidens entering a home to search for sickness in the name of the queen, and ignored a few people being taken , forcibly for healing. But encountered a platoon of maidens entering a home and declaring them harboring a sick person, and sentencing death.
The Ronin has issued a challenge to the lead maiden, the magus is ramping up a spell, the Barbarian is setting up flanking and the Oracle hasnt declared intention yet, but they are all about to roll initiative and kill the maidens to save the people....
I haven't gotten to the part where they slaughter 100 people in the street yet, thinking about maybe making that happen during this fight as possibly more maidens try to show up to help their beseiged comrades and are intervened by townsfolk.
The group has broken for dinner, obviously there are parts of the AP I am ending up going to skip.
Should I just go with playing out several altercations with the maidens in lieu of were rats and sea hags as they progress through this module, heading toward the entire quarantine of old korvosa?
Maybe even making that happen sooner or later due to the actions of the PCs?
Were there any ideas in the (sticky) thread for Seven Days? I think a few groups figured out the coin thing early, so there may be some suggestions as to what to do. My group didn't figure out the coins, but wanted to hit the ship early for clues and I had to really keep them off it. They were all about following the rules though.
What you don't exactly want to happen is have them directly confronting the Grey Maidens as a whole. Even the lower level ones currently will pose a challenge to them in force. The PCs would be seen as inhibiting the lawful actions of the crown and get annihilated, especially since they hate your city's government currently.
Perhaps you could play it off as some citizens wish to riot, but others who know the PCs have helped out in the past beg the PCs to diplomacize the riotous citizens down or the Grey Maidens will begin to slaughter needlessly to keep Order. Play them up as similar to the Order of the Nail in that Law and Order are the end-all be-all and anyone against the Law is bad. Have it so the PCs encounter the angry mob and have to calm and scatter them before the Maidens arrive. Maybe they have to do it a few places. Then, the last place turns out to be Eries Yellow-Eyes asking them to talk down Girrigz since they're so good at it? Perhaps instead of telling them about the weird ship (since they've already deduced it) maybe the rats saw someone in a robe onboard the ship right before it sank, and they think there may be clues to helping them determine who was responsible for the plague there...kinda throwing them bigger crumbs to be interested in investigating it.
I tied the Mirukovas into my PCs backgrounds so she was easy for my group. If your group has an NPC they check in with vs Cressidia, I'd have her begging for their aid next time they show up. Or have her wandering the streets begging for anyone to help her. Then when they emerge from there or from the sewers thing, they can find out about the Quarantine. It should happen in the background.
Well the Pcs are about to roll initiative, which will likely happen tonight.
Six Maidens (2nd level fighters) , two physicians (2nd level alchemists) and a maiden leader (level 4 cavalier on a horse)
The group is currently:
Oracle 2/ ninja 2
Magus 4
Ronin 3/ bard 1
Inquisitor 2/ urban barbarian 1/ oracle 1
The ronin is mounted and ready to charge the maiden leader.
Two Physicians and four maidens are in a home, "escorting" the inhabitants to quarantine.
So out on the streets are two maidens who are right in front of the oracle ninja, arms outstretched with the "move along citizen there is nothing to see here". And the 4th level leader.
The Pc's can probably take the contingent in the street in a round or two, before the others in the building react. But will be outnumbered when the others come out.
So how quickly can they quell the combat before anyone can call for help?
The PC's (for whatever reason) viewed the Order of the Nail as legitimate Law Enforcement and felt although they didn't like their way of doing it, those who they were "enforcing the law" on were doing bad things (looting)
However now the Maidens and their doctor buddies are picking on people who are sick and it's not their fault. Along with the fact, that they have figured out it is coins, and the suspicion that this is being done deliberately, they have correctly assumed that the lower class is being targeted purposely, they all definitely caught the vibe from the meeting with the Dr/new maidens that they were unwelcome amongst the guard. (the players are calling them 'clone troopers')
They are also VERY suspicious of them being an all female knighthood (odd they would pick up on that, three of the players are female).
The Pc's do have two doses of a potion of cure disease, the oracle can cast remove sickness a few times, possibly if they offer to cure the citizens, they can convince the maidens to go elsewhere.
However, the oracle did not like being told to beat it, and the PC's eyes lit up at the opportunity to jump some maidens. So I think it's going to be a beat down.
I even heard some talk at dinner about a few of the players thinking they can take the Maidens armor, and impersonate them to get into the castle to see whats REALLY going on.
This could get dicey!
I see a prolonged battle with maidens leading to cutting the bridges from old korvosa really early.
As things have turned out lately (oddly enough) they trust cressida over the maidens and their tightest NPC connection is Ishanti with the church of abadar.
Trinia also hides at their base of operations (the three rings) where as, the way things worked out, they escorted the 'false trinia' out town, because they had harbored the real trinia and the false one was put up for execution. So the PCs know for sure Illeosa is up to something.
There is no "going along with the maidens for now".
Cressida would have to convince them not to ambush miadens on sight and unfortunately shes' not there.
As for the wererat thing, I was thinking of having the wererats in on the plot to spread the disease, and were operating in the sewers. PC's might have to take to the sewers to avoid patrols of maidens if they get marked for death.
Some of this would happen a little early, but it's not like it doesn't happen at some point in the adventure anyway.
So the PC's got to WWF Smack Down with the Crimson Gals.
The Oracle/Ninja pulled a vanishing trick and side stepped the two at the door to stealth into the house, and the Half-orc cast magic weapon, moved up and started a judgement, went rage at the beginning of round 1. The Magus tripped one of the maidens with her whip (which technically starts the fight) and the Ronin bounces an arrow off the Maiden Leaders breast plate.
Inside the ninja witnesses a maiden hauling a mother and her child by the arm pits toward the door, but upon seeing the ninja lets the citizens go and readies her shield and weapon.
Physicians from the up the stairs toss bombs at her.
Outside the Ronin and the Maiden cavalier are locked in a sword fight on horse back with the magus and the half orc battle the two maidens on foot.
Inside the oracle ninja casts cause fear on the maiden approaching her, and chases her off.
Physicians toss more bombs from the upper level, and calling for help summon three more maidens from deeper in the house.
Two maidens open fire with longbows one maiden comes storming down the stairs.
With one of the maidens outside killed. the half orc moves inside, placing himself between the advancing maiden and the oracle ninja.
the oracle ninja casts entropic shield.
The magus finishes off the last foot maiden outside with the ronin continues clashing with the maiden cavalier.
Inside the ninja oracle pulls a vanishing trick followed by a sneak attack flurry of stars, one of the stars results in a crit, pulling from the deck, we get a disarm result, forcing one of the physicians to drop his bomb. I ruled it went off at his feet (hilarious) and boooom!
The half orc and maiden down stairs continue battling.
The other maiden with the bow twangs away while the physicians attempt to hit the ninja with bombs.
Outside the magus finishes off the maiden cavalier with her wand of magic missles.
The ronin tries to capture the maidens bonded mount.
Next round the magus moves inside, and toasts a physician with her wand of magic missiles.
the ninja oracle gets off another cause fear, sending another maiden off running.
the half orc drops the last maiden and the final physician is done for before the ronin ever makes it inside.
It isn't before long, that the feared maidens, run into more of their sisters, sounding the alarm of rebellion, sparking the events of the merciless way massacre.
The Pc's are forced to escape into the sewers under the arrow fire from no less than 40 maidens.
Hiding in the sewers, one maiden finds the sewer grate they went down, but the Oracle ninja, once again causes fear on the maiden, sending her off.
The PC's shortly ater find them selves on the outskirts of the were rat stronghold.
Not, toooo bad all things considered.
I'm going with the idea that the wererats are part of the cult of urgathoa cult. Keep things on track and throw the PC's some more clues.
I'm kinda reticent of having everyone in town against them. Adding the rats as well is going to start piling up all the bad stuff and they may start wondering if this town is worth saving.
Going against the maidens now though, I would play it up as they've now 'defied authority of the crown' and are now considered outlaws.
Having a price on their heads a little early isn't all that bad. They will just have to really lay low. I'm wondering how that will work out for them in Chapter 3. Though with the Quarantine it wouldn't be hard for them to hide out there to let things cool down, they'd just have a harder time collecting any reward money for saving the citizens during the plague.
Unless Cressidia, maybe through Ishani, contacts them on the DL and offers aid if they ask for it, in return for checking on a couple things she can't do with the Maidens in her face. Common enemy always promotes cooperation?
Well oddly enough, several of the PC's are really good at disguise, bluff and diplomacy. the only one who isn't is the magus, who is like a quisenart killing machine (she rolled a crit on a shocking grasp, and pulled a crit card that said 'electrocuted' the damage was insane.)
Trinia is still floating around too, can probably help with disguise. So they will probably, if I know them, travel by sewers are by disguise.
They aren't leaving town NOW, there is too much going on. They are after the source of the disease coins.
I'm kinda trying to figure out if the maidens who have seen them, could positively identify them.
It was night, under torch light, the maidens were busy slaughtering a lot of people, the ones that saw them face to face are dead, and the maidens that were trying to quell the 'revolt' fired on them with bows from short range but not point blank range.... so living maidens never got a close up on them.
Disguise, some bluff and "huh oh that wasn't me, I don't hang out in north point" should probably be pretty easy.
But the Maidens did capture the Ronins horse.... hmmmmm (forced the leave it behind when escaping into the sewers)
I'm thinking of canceling the whole future trip to the cinderlands.
I might bring the shoanti to the walls of korvosa in a war party. Camped outside the walls, the Gray maidens will have another thing taking their attention as well. When the PC's got to scar wall, they will have to pass through the lines of the Shoanti in the same way bilbo had to pass through the army of men... A little diplomacy, the necessary NPC contacts, convincing the shoanti not to mount a full scale attack and let them handle it from with in, they just, need, one thing. I might have the mantis complicate things at scarwall by following them and fighting them there. It would also make sense that the mantis would ordered to infiltrate the shoanti parked outside the gate, to murder leaders, create dissent and demoralize the threatening barbarian horde as well.
I want to work in Academy of secrets, so I might not have them go all the way out to the cinderlands as a result.
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Pendagast, if you havn't given up on trying to run the AP along the lines of how it's written, I would recommand to tone down the Grey Maidens a bit more. preseant them as very forceful but not really EVIL quite yet. Maybe have Croft talk with them about the issue and show them that to a certain extent, the way the Grey Maidens behave is an obligation of reality - someone needs to man up and do the ugly things needed to stop the plague (maybe at first, Croft is actualy relieved that the responsibility to do so is not on her shoulders). For example in the riot where the maidens kill a hundred people, maybe reduce the number of dead to a dozen or so and have the rest be wounded (broken bones, severed limbs, that kind of thing), and also take the time to show that a considerable number of Grey Maidens were ijured in the chaos as well, to show that there was an actual fight there.
Bit by bit, increase the level of violance the Grey Maidens show until there is no doubt that their violance is exeggarted and meant to press the people of Korvosa - but up to that point, play them along those grey lines of morality that Curse of the Crimson Throne is so good at.
Well at this point , I don't think it's gray anymore, the gray lines ended when the Order of the Nail retreated and the Gray Maidens were formed.
Pc's already don't trust the doctors, and are going to find out what is going on here REAL soon, as they are going to go after them.