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Hey everyone! I'm taking some time away from my disturbingly fecund Akiton thread (I got a hunch books coming out around Iron Gods may help settle some of the technology rules and such) to do something more "normal": setting up some ideas for a campaign in Gundrun, the tiny little town of mostly-normal folk trying to eke put a living in the southern Worldwound. Since this is the spot on the boards with the most Worldwound fans per capita I'd assume, it seemed a good place to put all this.
For a place with a population of 600-odd souls, Gundrun's gotten some impressive coverage in Lost Kingdoms and The Worldwound. And I think it's because it's a perfect place to let low-level PCs experience the horrors of the Worldwound first-hand and still have a relatively safe home base to return to. It begs for a lot of options, from simple, doomed, low-level one-shots into the Worldwound to a campaign of Kingmaker II: Demon Edition. I'm gonna shoot between those two, with options enough hopefully for the former, and suggestions on rocking the latter.
From here on out, I'm assuming anyone jumping into this fan-project will have access to those books and will have read the relevant sections, so I'm only going to reference them instead of copypasta-ing their contents whole-cloth (for a myriad of legal and other reasons). So far I've got a map (unmarked, but ready to include the locations from the map in The Worldwound plus more as they are added), stats for Clanleige Martolls Clefthorn, some roughly sketched-out ideas, and a brain-bucket of others.
Anyhoo, I'll probably start out by fleshing out the campaign concept a bit then adding as I go. Any ideas, suggestions, concerns, arguments, and what-all are welcome. I'll probably be back with the outline as it stands tomorrow. For now, though, enjoy a map. Finalized updates will end up in the Gundrun folder on my Google Drive.
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K, today was busier than expected, and besides, this is still all in brainstorm mode. So absolute bare-bones mini-campaign outline:
Campaign begins with all the PCs as lifetime residents or recent transplants to Gundrun (backgrounds can be easily tied in with campaign traits; I have a few percolating). Each PC starts at 1st level, naturally (perfect fit since Gundrun is made up entirely of low-level NPCs). The PCs, for various reasons tied to their backgrounds, have heard rumors of an old Sarkorian crypt nearby that could set them all on the path to wealth and fame (there being essentially no other options for such anywhere within Gundrun or its environments, as anyone who's spent time in the town can attest). For more nobly-minded PCs, rumors of potent holy artifacts can be a draw, or old lore or magic for the intellectual or power-hungry PC. In addition to each PC bringing a specific bit of information or skill (represented by their class and background), the backgrounds will also tie PCs to one of several locals with their own agenda, and a gift from said NPC mentor/patron to help them on their quest (something small, probably worth about 50 gp). The trip over has a few minor encounters with deformed native fauna, but it should be easily overcome by canny PCs.
Within the crypt, they face undead, vermin, and a quasit with some dretch servants and more pride than sense. They also uncover minor magical treasures, lore, and the good old mundane coin that adventuring folks so love. More importantly, however, they discover that, unbeknownst to them, an inscription in the tomb indicates the PCs have been expected by the original builders, as individuals of their vague description are destined to arrive, defeat several evils that arrived through a "blighted rift that sickens the land", and that one or more of them is fated to become a Sarkorian lord reborn and rule the strangely resistant-to-taint lands of Gundrun.
Traveling back to the town as heroes, the PCs can spend time discussing with their mentors about this strange inscription, and each NPC has specific clues to give their tied-in PC. To learn more, however, they are pointed in the direction of a mysterious caretaker, hermit, or spirit that looks over the Walk of Lost Gods. The figure is only seen on moonless nights, allowing PCs some downtime to research on their own (though lore in Gundrun is limited and overland travel to larger communities is especially dangerous with the flood of demons working their way to the Worldwound's borders with the failing of the Wardstones). PCs can also take up various downtime activities (from Ultimate Campaign) and such in this section of waiting.
More to come; rather not type all this and lose it to the oddly tenuous internet I've been having this week.
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Here's some good times: quick stat-up of Whalt, the old-as-dirt owner of Gundrun's only bar, the Splinter, and one of several NPC buddies available as PC contacts.
SPAAAACE...
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Whalt has been around for a long time. Just a few summers shy of his hundredth year (or, as he puts it, "finally old enough to keep sleeping with an elf from being a crime," in his still-saucy parlance), Whalt was alive at the fall of Drezen, an event that cost him most of his faith, his shield, and his left arm. Whalt was also there when Martolls Clefthorn rallied an unlikely grouping of Sarkorian expatriates, crusaders, and mercenaries to take back the town of Gundrun, and has remained ever since. Whalt has seen more than most humanoids could expect to, regardless of their age, and while it has cost him much, it has never destroyed his sense of humor and spark for life.
Whalt has suffered the ravages of age quite well, all things considered; he still has at least some of his hair, several teeth, and can still ably roll a pony-barrel of ale and heft it into place, though he prefers his more able-bodied staff do that job, as the work leaves him winded for a while. He loves to swap stories with old soldiers and green recruits alike, and offers generous pours for those with a tale to tell.
Because The Splinter requires a lot of imported goods (little of Gundrun's precious grain can be spared for his in-house brews, and even less is available to replace a broken tap or stein), and because Whalt is almost more of an institution than even his own bar, it seems he knows almost every traveler that passes through town. Whalt is therefore every merchant's first stop for new hires, and without him, locals worry that legitimate trade within the town might dry up. Fortunately, the old coot seems firmly tethered to his mortal coil, no matter what the ravages of time throw at him.
Male venerable Taldan human fighter 5
N Medium humanoid (human)
Init -1; Senses Perception +8
DEFENSE
AC 9, touch 9, flat-footed 9 (-1 Dex)
hp 27 (5d10-5)
Fort +3, Ref +0, Will +3; +1 vs. fear
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee mwk longsword +6 (1d8+2/19-20) or
improvised weapon +5 (1d6)
Special Attacks weapon training (heavy blades) +1
STATISTICS
Str 10, Dex 8, Con 9, Int 13, Wis 15, Cha 11
Base Atk +5; CMB +5; CMD 14
Feats Alertness, Catch Off-Guard, Persuasive, Skill Focus (Knowledge (local), Profession (bartender)), Weapon Focus (longsword), Weapon Specialization (longsword)
Skills Diplomacy +5, Intimidate +7, Knowledge (local) +9, Perception +8, Profession (bartender) +10, Sense Motive +8
SQ armor training 1, bravery +1
Languages Common, Kellid
Gear masterwork longsword, keys to all the rooms in The Splinter
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Venerable Whalt has been alive for almost a century, though despite his advanced age, his mind is surprisingly sharp. He has accrued all the bonuses and penalties of venerable age (-6 to Str, Dex, and Con; +3 to Int, Wis, and Cha), already included in his attributes. In addition, he has sold most of his adventuring gear and invested the money into his bar, The Splinter, or retraining his skills and feats, giving him the wealth of a 1st-level NPC. These changes reduce his CR by 3.
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Didn't know he was in King of Chaos. I've only read, like, four books in the Pathfinder Fiction tales. All I had to go on was the info in Lost Kingdoms and some extrapolation of how old he'd have to be to have actually fought to defend Drezen.
If he's in there, I might have to go beg a copy off someone. I hope I'm not too far off from the canon.
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I can easily change him over to a Kellid in a final document version. Just guessed being a crusader he's likely from further south. And I should have written the description a bit cleaner, indicating he lost most of his shield and most of his arm, as well as most of his faith.
But yeah, in Lost Kingdoms it's mentioned he's got what remains of the shield up above the bar, and that it was a hezrou (which do love their swamps).
But if I actually hit the nail on the head regarding the other stuff, well, I'll chalk it up to good luck and passable guessing.
Heh. First time I met Dave Gross, I'd been sitting on a couch chatting and drinking with him for an hour before I found out who he was. :P
EDIT: Do any of the other big-wigs in Gundrun come up in King of Chaos? I think my VL has all the Pathfinder Tales books; I'll have to ask her if she's got a copy lying around, and spare the details on named townsfolk 'til I know more. I've got Martolls Clefthorn statted, but I've left out descriptive details, so I can adjust his info pretty easily if needed.
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Continuing the plot arc:
Well-rested and with some time spent on their personal projects, The PCs can ready themselves to meet with the caretaker of the Walk of Lost Gods. The night is cool and quiet, with most folks staying home out of respect or fear of the Walk's mysterious guardian, or else drinking the night away at The Splinter. Sure enough, as the PCs wait out the night, the Guardian of the Walk appears, its incorporeal form shifting between humanoid, beast, and some things in-between as it passes the stones, stopping occasionally to touch one of the rune-carved rocks. Before the PCs can approach, however, the Guardian (a ghost druid of some sort; name and gender TBD, but suggestions welcome) is assaulted by demons. The PCs rush in to fight off the fiendish invaders, but when they slay or drive off the last of them, the ghostly figure is gone. Faint phosphorescent tracks lead to a copse of twisted dead trees a half-mile outside of town, where an old Sarkorian druid shrine lies shattered and forgotten.
There, the Guardian greets the PCs by name, answering their questions, confirming their fated appearance ("a few decades later than promised, but with the death of prophecy, such things are to be expected," it adds wryly), and informing them of the trials they are to face in vague, classic-hero-quest style, and warns them: sometime during their tasks, one of their mentors will betray them, though not entirely by their own choice, and not for the reasons that would seem most obvious. How they deal with this betrayal is not written in the stones or the stars, but the Guardian is certain that when the time is right, they will know how to proceed.
Armed with their new information and their first quest ("claim the horns of an unbodied demon with its very fangs; their bearer shall be marked by lost lords"), the PCs can continue their research. Clues exist and some PCs may have a hunch about what they are supposed to face, but all signs point to the Well that Hungers, a haunted cavern complex on the banks of the Silverscale River. There they will face incorporeal undead, possessed crusaders, and more, and recover a pair of ghost touch daggers hidden inside a long-dead, flayed and posed crusader's corpse pinned to a wall. Some earlier research or on-the-spot investigation leads the PCs to discover the fallen crusader's name and fate, carrying his enchanted daggers and a spell he devised, into his hate-blasted fane and slay him. The PCs then claim the shadow demon's suddenly-corporeal horns as their own, where they discover the horns can be used in a ritual to bind them to a PC's own arms, armor, gear, or person and marking that PC as the Fiendslayer and granting all the PCs a special boon from lost Sarkorian gods.
The PCs must wait once more to discuss their next task with the spirit, but they won't have to sit on their hands the whole time: after a few day's downtime, word reaches the town that trade caravans keep disappearing, and the townsfolk (and the PCs' mentors) turn to them to solve the mystery.
TO BE CONTINUED