Had this thread in the advice forum, moving it here upon suggestion.
I'm the DM for a brand-new pathfinder group. We're six sessions in and the story is getting rolling. Unfortunately, my schooling is starting up again and I've a heckuva lot of other things going on at the moment as well so I've found myself with less and less time to prep, much less invent and design an entire plot.
So the advice I'm looking for: Adventure paths? The group is level 4 right now and is escorting the mysteriously exiled princess of the Crimson Throne of Korvosa back to the city to help overthrow the court wizard that kidnaped her and usurped her father. With this I was thinking jumping into the Curse of the Crimson Throne path might work pretty well since we're headed to Korvosa anyway but since I don't know the plot of the AP at all, and considering we'd be starting with the second module... asking if it will fit, or suggestions on how to make it fit with what I've done so far.
What I've done so far:
The party cleared out the Crypt of the Everflame, defeating a Dark Stalker mook of the evil wizard (who escaped, dundunnn) and discovered Melara Skorra, princess of Korvosa, in suspended animation in a hidden chamber. They rescued her, found a way to return her memories and are on their way to korvosa, stopping to smite some Derro and Goblins on the way.
The plan was to have the party join an underground resistance once in the city, putting pieces together to infiltrate the palace and overthrow the Necromancer. There was a twist wherein the reason the necromancer took power was that the King had been influenced by a much eviler Efreeti, which the wizard sealed away within the Princess's body to defeat. (explaining why she was hidden and not killed like her father)
So, I've the basic plot down but have no time anymore to flesh it out and design encounters. I'm willing to abandon it and use an AP since the alternative is straight up quitting but I need to work in the plot elements I've introduced thus far and work around skipping the first module. Major issue: I don't want to/can't afford to buy any of the modules unless I know for certain they're what I'll be using. Can youse guys give me some opinions, ideas, explanations as to how, why of if I can work the plot I made thus far into that of COTC, preferably starting with the second module?
Which is why I'm asking for help to do so.
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Are your player aware of the efreet story ? if not, you 're not so far from crimson throne. exchange the efreet by the dragon. REname ileosa with the name you gave the princess (or better, put her on the throne where she will take a new name as a queen). Come up with a deus ex machina. When The adventurer come back in the city with the heir of the throne, the city revolt and cick the necro out (without the help of the players) So the princess take the throne under the name of Ileosa the first and thanks the heros for their help and offer them to work with the city guard. Then you can jump back in the CoCT somewhere around the end of the first book. (make them play, at least the corpse retreival and the eel's end)
my 0.02c
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Which is why I'm asking for help to do so.
It would be easier to help you if you were at least a little bit familiar with the AP so we could refer to plot elements that need adjustment without having to explain them first, but I'll give it a try. . .
First, to echo and expand upon r-Kelleg's question, how much of the plot you described above has already been revealed to the PCs? If they're still in the dark about some (preferably most) of those details--or your players are the sort who'd be OK with a bit of retconning for the sake of a good story--it would make it easier.
Second, what is the source of the information the PCs do have? If it all came from the princess herself that would be useful as some or all of it could turn out to be false. This part hinges on your willingness to turn the princess into the main villain of the AP; are you OK with doing that?
All they know is that she is the princess of Korvosa and was kidnapped in the night by the necromancer's men.
I was planning on turning her into a villain anyway, so that works fine.
So, I could make it so la resistance already has the pieces in place and was just awaiting the return of the princess. Once she is back on the throne, could I sub out the crown of fangs for the ring used in the binding ritual to make her dragon possesed? Is the crown integral or can I manage it with some name-swapping? (eg. ring of blabidybloo replaces crown of fangs in any instance)
How soon does it become apparent to the PCs the queen is behind the plague?
End of Book 2 is when it's pretty much officially revealed.
Smart players will have figured it out way earlier.
I would say you would need some time to setup your princess to replace the queen. A lot of the behind the scenes plot would take quite some time to setup... (contacting the Red Mantis, getting the Doctor and the Queen's Physicians to arrive in Korvosa, developing the plague itself)
i.e. I wouldn't just jump into the happenings of book 2 without there being some time for the princess to actually get everything setup.
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All they know is that she is the princess of Korvosa and was kidnapped in the night by the necromancer's men.
I was planning on turning her into a villain anyway, so that works fine.
So, I could make it so la resistance already has the pieces in place and was just awaiting the return of the princess. Once she is back on the throne, could I sub out the crown of fangs for the ring used in the binding ritual to make her dragon possesed? Is the crown integral or can I manage it with some name-swapping? (eg. ring of blabidybloo replaces crown of fangs in any instance)
How soon does it become apparent to the PCs the queen is behind the plague?
As Curmudgeonly says, it becomes pretty apparent by the end of book 2, but players will probably suspect sooner than that.
Have the party heard anything about this necromancer from anyone other than the princess? The existence of the necromancer is a bit of a problem in my opinion. If all they have is her word for it, I'd suggest that it would be easiest to say the whole thing is a lie she made up to gain the party's sympathy and assistance. If you could work with that, let me run the following scenario up the flagpole and see if you salute:
There was no necromancer. Instead it was the king who had his daughter sent away when he noticed her behaving strangely (actually, she was beginning to feel the influence of the Fangs of Kazavon buried deep below Castle Korvosa, but the king just thought she was possessed or going mad--or worse, beginning to be affected by the dreaded Curse that has haunted his line since it's beginning). With the help of a wizard from the Acadamae he had her whisked away to the place where the PCs eventually found her, to keep her safe while said wizard researched a cure for her condition. Unfortunately something went wrong there, the wizard was killed and the baddies your party eventually defeated took over the place.
Meanwhile, back in Korvosa, the old King died suddenly and whispers circulated around the city that the Curse of the Crimson Throne had claimed two more victims. With no heir available the Seneschal of Korvosa has been ruling the city since the king's death. The mood of the city when the PCs arrive with the princess is somber and subdued but the place is hardly reeling under the tyranny of an evil necromancer as the party expects. When this becomes undeniably evident, the princess confesses to the party that her story was a lie but insists that it was the only way she could be sure they would help her, and promises to make it up to them when she is reunited with her father (whom she still does not know is dead).
Now, about the princess--she has always been an entitled, greedy, self-centered and arrogant girl, but she is also incredibly charming and beautiful, so most people have remained unaware of her true nature and those who suspected were either charmed or manipulated into submission. When the party takes her to the palace the Seneschal (who knows her character flaws but doesn't begin to suspect just how deep they go or how great her ambition is) recognizes her at once, tells her of her father's passing (which she and the party will probably have already heard of, but he needs to follow protocol) and begins making arrangements for her coronation--he's a good man and knows his duty, so he has no hesitation about handing over the reins of power to the rightful heir.
Not everyone in Korvosa is happy about the return of the heiress to the Crimson Throne. Her father's wasteful spending--and high taxes--had made him unpopular in some circles and many thought the Seneschal actually did a better job of running the city than the royal family had, so those factions were not thrilled at the idea of a royal restoration. Still others--gossips and conspiracy theorists--don't believe that the princess is who she claims to be, but rather an impostor seeking to usurp the throne from the true princess (whom they further speculate to have been done in by the very woman now claiming the right to rule!). Finally there are those who do believe the princess is genuine but have heard the rumors about her self-serving nature and fear for the city's fate once she takes the throne. The friction between these factions and the equally large group of Korvosans who are pleased to welcome a legitimate ruler back to their city grows daily, and by the day of the coronation the city is erupting into unrest and scattered rioting.
Allow at least two weeks between the return of the princess to the palace and her formal coronation as Queen. Use that time go get the PCs settled into the city (give them a nice large house--or smaller individual houses--as a gift of gratitude from the Seneschal). Play up the growing unrest and the beginnings of the rioting as coronation day approaches. During this time throw two of the random encounters from "Edge of Anarchy" at them: the otyugh attack (for a little Korvosan flavor) and the encounter with Grau Soldado (this one is especially important as he returns with a big plot hook later on if they help him).
Once on the throne, the princess makes a big show of honoring the PCs for saving her and restoring her to her rightful place, but secretly worries that they may know more than is good for her so decides to follow the old adage about keeping one's friends close and one's enemies even closer. At the coronation ball she introduces them to Field Marshall Cressida Kroft and essentially presses them into the city's service as "special agents" of the Korvosan Guard. Do whatever it takes to manipulate them into accepting if they're hesitant, but I'd recommend a carrot (or bunch of carrots) over a stick at this point. If you've played things right the party will still think of the princess--now Queen--as a friend and ally at this point.
From there on out you're pretty much on track with the AP. The Queen finds the Fangs of Kazavon under the palace shortly after taking power and the Seneschal flees as per the standard plot. I'd recommend running the Eel's End mission (to introduce Vencarlo Orisini, who will be pivotal later on) and the body retrieval mission (to introduce Thousand Bones who will similarly reappear later in the AP) but you can easily skip the rest of the missions from "Edge of Anarchy".The only major plot thread this doesn't address is the Harrow deck haunted by the ghost of Zellara, but that can be written out of the story without losing too much.
How does that sound?
Lovely. Thanks a million. Most of my players are embroiled in midterms at the moment, so I've a few weeks yet to put it all together.
The only reason the players would suspect a necromancer is from the zombies and skeletons in the crypt of the everflame, but I can fudge that easily. Mook guarding the crypt was low-level necromancer king hired etc.
Isn't the crypt of the everflame the first of 3 books? You could have also continued the quests for those books if you wanted.
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Lovely. Thanks a million. Most of my players are embroiled in midterms at the moment, so I've a few weeks yet to put it all together.
The only reason the players would suspect a necromancer is from the zombies and skeletons in the crypt of the everflame, but I can fudge that easily. Mook guarding the crypt was low-level necromancer king hired etc.
Glad you like it.
I've thought of a few other plot elements need to be adjusted, and one other mission you should send your PCs on to introduce an important NPC. (Sorry, I was working from memory and forgot a few things).
In the original plot, the Seneschal flees the castle after confronting Ileosa about his suspicions that she is poisoning the King. She sends her Red Mantis associates to kill him, but he manages to escape and finds temporary shelter at the home of a friend in Old Korvosa. In this revised version, the Seneschal overhears the Queen plotting to unleash the Blood Veil plague on Korvosa with Dr. Davaulus, but is caught eavesdropping and flees the scene. Davaulus immediately sends assassins after him, but he escapes as above. Confident that the assassins will track him down and complete their task quickly, Davaulus and the Queen use Sculpt Corpse (via scroll, as they both have Use Magic Device ranks and that's exactly the sort of scroll Davaulus would keep handy) on the body of an unfortunate prisioner to mimic the body of the Seneschal, and then the Queen sadly announces his murder to the shocked public. Now she needs a scapegoat, whom she finds in the person of a young artist who had been meeting regularly with the Seneschal to paint his official portrait. From this point, run the Trinia Sabor capture mission as written, as well as the scene at the end of the chapter with her failed execution and rescue by Blackjack.
So I guess now I'm suggesting that you run all the missions from "Edge of Anarchy" except the Fishery and All the World's Meat (but find a way to place the Raktavarna from AtWM in one of the other areas if possible; Devargo Barvasi would be a good candidate to have it IMO). Your fourth level party will blow through these quickly if you run them as written, but it really is necessary to run them to introduce a bunch of NPCs who will be important later. If your group is OK with a few easy jobs then you could simply play them as written and get them out of the way quickly, but if you think they will get bored at the lack of challenge you may have to increase the CRs to keep their interest up. I realize that doesn't precisely satisfy your goal of avoiding extra prep work but it will only be for the first book*, after that (assuming you don't let them level up any further) they will be at the right level to continue into "Seven Days to the Grave".
*as CotCT is written for 3.5e, you will have to do some difficulty adjustment throughout the AP for a party of Pathfinder RPG characters, especially if there are more than 4 players and/or they have particularly good stats and builds. This will generally involve adding a few extra mooks and raising their HP or AC (but not both at once) and perhaps giving the bosses a few extra levels or the advanced template. If your group is just 4 (or fewer) players and not overly optimized, you won't have to change as much. There are threads in this folder that address these issues, including some with the various NPCs already converted to Pathfinder stats.
I don't think CotCT is a good fit for what you want to do, I think you'd be rewriting everything.
Your plot is to infiltrate the city and kill the necromancer, but that doesn't fit with either book 2-5. It kind of fits into book 6, but events are non-covert at that point and you'd be making everything up.
Book 6 has the entire map of Castle Korvosa, so that can be used, although the encounters are for levels 14-16.
As someone else suggested, following the Crypt of the Everflame module arc has more of you want I think.