Map Locations in the Greenbelt

[Bobmuffin52]

So I’m going to begin running Kingmaker very soon, and I just ran into something I’m not sure to handle and couldn’t find the answer for it.

Are all the map locations from Stolen Lands and Rivers Run Red in the Greenbelt available right at the star of the adventure? For example, Narthropple’s expedition is in the hex right next to the Stage Lord’s fort; is Narthropple there the first time the PCs meet the needed perception check in that hex, or should I wait till the Stag Lord is defeated and the PCs have had some time to set up their kingdom?

Thanks in advance!

[Philip Knowsley]

As far as I'm aware - everything is there as soon as the PCs are able to
perceive it.

You may or may not want to run it that way in your game - depends on whatever
plans you have, or want to set in motion...

Thing is - this is a sandbox game. PCs can (& will) go anywhere & everywhere,
so beng able to find stuff all over the place is a good thing. It also
means that people (like Narthropple) that they meet early on can be brought
back later in the game as recurring NPCs.

I'd suggest reading more in these forums, as a lot of different people have
provided all sorts of ideas for 'other' encounters. e.g. this is supposed
to be the wild frontier - but the AP doesn't really have any trappers as
encounters, except the occassional one-off. Create some trappers & settlers
who are here before everyone else.
Your PCs will enjoy it more if people come & go independant of their acrions.

[Justin Sluder]

For certain things, yes, they are always there, until the PC's take care of them. Other things, I wouldn't have them show up until the PC's have a kingdom in the works, as the encounters otherwise don't really seem logical to me.

[Andostre]

Yeah, I think it's a good rule of thumb to assume that all of the encounters are there waiting for the PCs to discover them, unless the AP specifically says that an encounter is related to a specific event (such as when the PCs return to Oleg's for the 2nd time or return to their kingdom a certain time).

[Lee Hanna]

I've been playing them by ear: Corax and his loggers won't show up until later. My party should cross through that hex next session, but since they only started their exploring and founding in the last 3 months, game time, I don't think he should be there just yet. I'm saving them for another month out, and maybe another hex.

[Philip Knowsley]

Lee Hanna wrote:

I've been playing them by ear: Corax and his loggers won't show up until later.

I think that's where reading & planning ahead really help... Of course, it's

each to his/her own - no biggie...but I had the party come accross Corax &
his crew earlier on under different circumstances, & not as 'an encounter'
as such. It was just a meeting which created the loggers already being in
similar areas looking for specialist woods, to set up him 'suddenly appearing
out of the blue' next time for the actual encouter as written.

Funnily enough, the party tried to recruit him first time around, & then
succeeded the second...