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So I am running Jade Regent for the following characters (so Trent, Sam and Edd, if you are reading this, please shoo!):
The heroes are:
Norrin Shee - Tien Paladin of Sarenrae and group leader
Shinji Nakamori - Half Elf Samurai and son of the imposing Tsutamu Nakamori (Tsutamu of course is the name of the Samurai protector of the Amatatsu)
Sahan Poshman - Gnome Summoner Dilettante - WWSD? The most impulsive thing possible in each situation, of course!
Rasmus Sorn - Adopted son of Enderaki Sorn and Martial Artist who is desperately trying to ignore the savage dreams of claw and teeth (Monk/Druid (Saurian Shaman))
And while I am keeping the main thrust of the story the same, I have made a couple of changes (and here they are for your perusal/critique and advice) to make the story stronger in my opinion.
1: I have, as homage to the Imperial Regalia of Japan, made three artifacts the Amatatsu seal/mirror of Shizuru, the Sword Kusanagi (taking the place of Suishen, I couldn't resist) and the Jade Blood of Tsukiyo (the Magatama from Japanese lore, though I have not been able to come up with powers for this one, help please!).
2: Said artifacts are intelligent, and quite a bit more powerful than minor artifacts, but this has no in-game effect, as the items have to tamp down on their power so as not to be noticed by the Five Storms.
3: There is one ruling family, the Amatatsu, of which Ameiko is the last. I know a lot of people are ambivalent about this, but I feel it fits the theme better (i.e. returning the last Empress to the throne, more gravitas). For the Well of Demons, I was planning to have them be failed Emperors and Empress of Minkai. Ameiko has to get the approval of one of the previous Emperors/Empresses, but the only ones available are Shigure (who wants his body back) or the failed rulers of Minkai from the Well of Demons (who all want something evil/nasty from the party).
4: Each member of the party has a magic item (worth 4000gp) earned from the vault under Brinewall Keep as advised by the adventure. To make it doubly portentous, each of these items is inhabited by a kami, a heroic soul from Minkai's history summoned from beyond the veil to lend their aid in Minkai's hour of greatest need.
The Armor of General Benkei - +2 O-Yoroi armor belonging to the General who broke the back of Anamurumon's human army
The Ruby choker of Torako - Flaming Amulet of Mighty Fists belonging to Torako Hige, the peerless huntress, both scourge and savior of Minkai when the Oni first attacked.
The Scimitar of Emir Saladin bin Ackbar bin Solaire - +1 keen Scimitar belonging to the Emir of Qadira (and paladin of Sarenrae) who rode to the rescue of Minkai during the first Oni war with his troop, the Brotherhood of the Sun. *More on this later, becomes a plot point*
The Rope Belt of the Nameless Master - Belt of Giant Strength +2 belonging to Tian Xia's greatest Martial Arts teacher.
Basically, each member of the party is arcane bonded (as the class ability) to one of these items and can increase it's abilities with money/time. Having a Kami mentor also helps to introduce the Eastern ambience early and to explain feat picks and spells picked up.
5: Instead of running the entire House of Withered Blossoms from the Forest of Spirits, I am going to replace the first half (2/3s?) with the Ruby Phoenix tournament, for the Ruby Phoenix vault holds the Magatama (where Rokuro Kaijutsu/Amatatsu Tsutoku left it for safe keeping). The Five Storms know and have sent their own team, (basically the last two encounters of the Ruby Phoenix tournament - Gomwai, the hobgoblin monk and his ogre-mage companions backed up by the Sisters Wu, two tiefling scions of the Five Storms).
6: I would like to change slightly the ally gathering in Tide of Honor:
- Instead of three ninja clans, one ninja family, with the ailing Grandmaster presiding over a fractured group, one half following the daughter, who wants to remain loyal to the Amatatsus and the other half following the elder brother, who wants to join with Oni Mask.
- The Emir Saladin and the Brotherhood of the Sun never returned to Qadira but stayed in Minkai to guard against further threats. In time, they morphed into a wandering priesthood (basically the traditional Sohei monks, mounted and swathed in cloth) viewed with suspicion by the Minkaiin crown. The ruling family of this group was descended from the Emir (who was bethrothed to a Minkaiin Princess).
Anamurumon, seeking revenge as a Wind Yai, subtly inserted his bloodline into this family, leading to the eventual birth of twins, one monstrous and one fair. It was then that Anamuruom, leading the imperial troops of Minkai (for he had gained the ear of the Emperor Shigure) struck and killed the ruling family in an attempt to kidnap the twins. He only succeeded in seizing the tiefling child, as the other was spirited away by loyal Brotherhood members.
The tiefling child grew up to be the Jade Regent we know, the other child is Norrin Shee, the Paladin PC, left at the Cathedral of Sandpoint for his protection. *Dun dun dunnnn!*.
The Brotherhood of the Sun could be a good ally, if they could be rescued from the Imperial army's vicious attack.
prototype00
I am preparing to run Jade Regent soon, so I don't have first hand experience with the AP...
My changes (so you know where I'm coming from): I'm not starting the campaign in Sandpoint, I'm starting it in a small village just outside of Goka (or perhaps a poor district of Goka). The campaign will be all eastern. Instead of caravan travel, I'm putting everyone on a junk that will sail around the southern arc of the Tien up towards Minkai but landing first in the Forest of Spirits.
1. I like what you have done here and I've done basically the same thing. For the Jade Blood of Tsukiyo, since magatama are prayer beads of sorts, why not base them on a necklace of prayer beads, but with stronger powers?
2. This is the solution I was looking for!
3. I have also reduced the ruling families of Minkai to 1. In all honesty, if there were five Houses who could potentially rule, there would be constant dynastic wars ala the drow houses. I am not using Ameiko, secretly one of the characters will be the Chosen One. My selection criteria is the player who shows the most roleplaying acumen and honour in an eastern setting. I figure I have until the end of Brinewall to see who stands out. But just in case the players go all sideways on my plan, I'll have one of the npcs travelling with the party with an alternate back story be the Chosen One if needed. In the Well of Souls, I was going to have all of the past rulers of Minkai available to consult with and who will give conflicting advice :)
4. I hadn't thought of adding a kami mentor to each magic item in the Brinewall treasury, that's an awesome idea! I know at least half of my players will struggle with eastern honour.
5. I think I'm going to steal this idea because I was having troubles seeing how the Ruby Phoenix Tournament could fit seamlessly into the AP.
6. This is where we differ a fair bit, but only in the makeup of the allies. I'm planning to have the AP run with a strong Star Wars feel to it. All of the elements are in place, the Jade Regent and Amumurumon are Palpatine and Vader. The Raven Prince is Boba Fett. Reishi is Ysanne Isard. The party is hunted for most of the AP. Some of the yakuza and ninja families and clans easily lend the feel of a gritty world. Plus the party are heroes helping to stage a rebellion against the person on the throne! At the very end, I see you've done the same with the party as I intend: one of them is the Chosen One!
Ah, very nice idea about the Magatama and Prayer Beads, I think that fits perfectly. I'll post something here when I have it statted out.
Yeah, I like the 1 Royal house as well, it fits Japanese mythology having the Imperial family be all descended from Shizuru. What is your reasoning behind not waning Ameiko to be the Chosen One?
prototype00
Yeah, I like the 1 Royal house as well, it fits Japanese mythology having the Imperial family be all descended from Shizuru. What is your reasoning behind not waning Ameiko to be the Chosen One?prototype00
I feel that having one of the player characters be the Chosen One will garner more by in from the players for the whole mission to overthrow the Jade Regent.
It also gives me a chance to give a tiny bit of mythic power to the party. The intent is to have the Brinewall treasure gift the party with the feats Marked For Glory for the Chosen One and Mythic Companion for the others. I'll see if it works out to move the Chosen One up to tier 1 and the rest to Marked For Glory a little later in the campaign when they defeat an important oni or something along those lines. It keeps things along the lines of a Star Wars feel. Mythic = Force.
It's almost as if the AP was written with this in consideration!
I did something similar with my campaign, handing out unique magic items that are tailored to each PC. I also riffed off the Legacy weapons theme, and had the items auto-upgrade at levels 8 and 11. Maybe another upgrade at 15, but we'll probably be done around then.
Here are the links:
Original Items
Level 8 Versions
Level 11 Versions (note one item missing here as the PC dropped out)
The PC classes are monk/paladin (Heng), vanguard gish (Parity), oracle of life (Harlan), magus (Malnival), and melee bard (Maeve).
Here are the links:Original Items
Level 8 Versions
Level 11 Versions (note one item missing here as the PC dropped out)
I really like what you've done here. I was considering something more along the lines of the ancestral weapons thing for samurai from the 3E Oriental Adventures book, but I might go this way instead!
Hmm, just updating with more changes I am considering...
1. The Oni are master manipulators, why not have them stoke Prince Batsaikhar's desire for one of the NPCs (or PCs), and stage an ambush on the last day of the feast after he has been turned down? A stand-off of sorts with a level appropriate encounter of Ordu-Aganhei's finest (mostly mooks, Batsaikhar is a bit of a blow-hard, but with the bodyguard Izume being a legitimate threat).
2. With the slightly reduced role of Miyaro as a guide to the forest of spirits, and the possibly increased role of the ninjas in the Tide of Honor book, perhaps she could be the daughter of the Ninja Grandmaster? In which case, her interference would be non-lethal, as she strives to subdue her wayward brother/sister ninja, before the party kills them. PCs who can speak Tien hear the ninjas refer to her as Ojou-sama before they are knocked unconscious.
3. Seranrae is the goddess of mercy and compassion, why not make the dark oni blood of the PC (Norrin Shee, the paladin of Seranrae) part of a redemptive story? The half-fiend daughter of Anamurumon could clash with the Emir Saladin, attempting to free her father, only to be redeemed by his/Seranrae's compassion. They wed, and the tainted blood flows within the bloodline of the leader of the "Warriors of the Sun"
Even more reason for the native Minkaiains to be suspicious of them! (leading to Emperor Shigure to order a purge of their numbers, a purge that Anamurumon, in his guise as first minister, was more than happy to carry out)
a: They are strange foreigners.
b: They practice a sun worshipping religion that is distinctly not Shizuru, the heretics!
c: Their leadership is said to have demonic features!
and of course d: They are powerful warriors and might be a powerful faction that opposes the throne of Minkai, it doesn't help that they seem to adhere to their own agenda (oni slaying) that sets them apart from the rest of Minkai.
As usual, I am interested to hear your thoughts.
prototype00
Hmm, just updating with more changes I am considering...
1. The Oni are master manipulators, why not have them stoke Prince Batsaikhar's desire for one of the NPCs (or PCs), and stage an ambush on the last day of the feast after he has been turned down? A stand-off of sorts with a level appropriate encounter of Ordu-Aganhei's finest (mostly mooks, Batsaikhar is a bit of a blow-hard, but with the bodyguard Izume being a legitimate threat).
2. With the slightly reduced role of Miyaro as a guide to the forest of spirits, and the possibly increased role of the ninjas in the Tide of Honor book, perhaps she could be the daughter of the Ninja Grandmaster? In which case, her interference would be non-lethal, as she strives to subdue her wayward brother/sister ninja, before the party kills them. PCs who can speak Tien hear the ninjas refer to her as Ojou-sama before they are knocked unconscious.
3. Seranrae is the goddess of mercy and compassion, why not make the dark oni blood of the PC (Norrin Shee, the paladin of Seranrae) part of a redemptive story? The half-fiend daughter of Anamurumon could clash with the Emir Saladin, attempting to free her father, only to be redeemed by his/Seranrae's compassion. They wed, and the tainted blood flows within the bloodline of the leader of the "Warriors of the Sun"
Even more reason for the native Minkaiains to be suspicious of them! (leading to Emperor Shigure to order a purge of their numbers, a purge that Anamurumon, in his guise as first minister, was more than happy to carry out)
a: They are strange foreigners.
b: They practice a sun worshipping religion that is distinctly not Shizuru, the heretics!
c: Their leadership is said to have demonic features!
and of course d: They are powerful warriors and might be a powerful faction that opposes the throne of Minkai, it doesn't help that they seem to adhere to their own agenda (oni slaying) that sets them apart from the rest of Minkai.As usual, I am interested to hear your thoughts.
prototype00
1. I am thinking you can 'manufacture' any incidents you want during the AP because the Five Storms (and Amumurumon in particular) are such masters at manipulation. Maybe even have one of the 'caravan' npcs be a planted informant. No reason not to up the paranoia level for the players :)
2. Historically (there's an ironic term), ninjas gave up all family ties when they were taken in by a clan. The ninja clan became their 'family'. So Miyaro could be a favoured student of the ninja grandmaster or maybe she's highly respected amongst all the ninja. I do like where you're going with this idea!
3. I like where you're going with this, though I have gone a different route myself. You're leaning towards that Star Wars feel, too. Doesn't this AP just cry for that? Onis, fiendish blood, foreigners, allies, rebels and all the other factions just call for betrayals, spies, informants and help from unexpected places. A truly epic story arc in the making. I can't wait to run this AP :)
I'm thinking Norrin needs to find out early on that Amumurumon is her father, just for the pathos and to give her a campaign quest :) Don't forget to have rumours and cut scenes detailing just how much of an evil bad a** her father is...
You'll also be able to use the ancestors in the Well to tell a sweeping, incredible story of how Minkai got here. This is the story telling tool I'm most looking forwards to using.
1. I am thinking you can 'manufacture' any incidents you want during the AP because the Five Storms (and Amumurumon in particular) are such masters at manipulation. Maybe even have one of the 'caravan' npcs be a planted informant. No reason not to up the paranoia level for the players :)
Quite true. I'm thinking of making Prince Batsaikhar's first minister Chua a Five Storms Oni (an ogre mage probably). That way, he can lead the party astray, while whispering corrupting advice to the Prince.
2. Historically (there's an ironic term), ninjas gave up all family ties when they were taken in by a clan. The ninja clan became their 'family'. So Miyaro could be a favoured student of the ninja grandmaster or maybe she's highly respected amongst all the ninja. I do like where you're going with this idea!
In this case, I am going with the Basilisk ninja clans, like the Iga and the Koga (who were historical as well!), who sure enough, took in the poor and destitute to train into fearsome stealth warriors, but at the top was a talented bloodline that provided the leadership.
In Minkai, as with all things in Jade Regent, this is falling into chaos, as the Ninja Grandmaster was poisoned (and is currently slowly dying) by Oni-Mask, his son fallen in with the Jade Regent to seek revenge on the oni mask ninjas(not knowing that oni-mask is an appendage of the Regent), and the grand-daughter, loyal to their previous masters, the Amatatsu Emperors seeking out rumours of a lost heir returning to claim her inheritance.
Perhaps the unwitting Gaijin have it in their power to right the things that are out of order? (I figure the Amatatsu Seal might be able to heal the Grandmaster, but what if Oni-Mask decide to attack at the inopportune moment?).
3. I like where you're going with this, though I have gone a different route myself. You're leaning towards that Star Wars feel, too. Doesn't this AP just cry for that? Onis, fiendish blood, foreigners, allies, rebels and all the other factions just call for betrayals, spies, informants and help from unexpected places. A truly epic story arc in the making. I can't wait to run this AP :)
I'm thinking Norrin needs to find out early on that Amumurumon is her father, just for the pathos and to give her a campaign quest :) Don't forget to have rumours and cut scenes detailing just how much of an evil bad a** her father is...
Thank you, I must say this is my favorite AP, for all that I'm putting in a couple of improvements.
I was thinking that Norrin might find the truth of his heritage in drips and drabs (I've had oni foes commenting that he had the "Blood of the Founder" and ask why he fights them, as well as the spirit of Kusanagi commenting that his blood is tainted.), culminating in the big reveal in the part of the House of Withered Blossoms that I'm leaving in (the last two levels, mostly) *though I haven't figured out how to reveal it to him as yet... I'm leaning towards Munasukaru taunting him with the knowledge. *
prototype00
1. I am thinking you can 'manufacture' any incidents you want during the AP because the Five Storms (and Amumurumon in particular) are such masters at manipulation. Maybe even have one of the 'caravan' npcs be a planted informant. No reason not to up the paranoia level for the players :)Quite true. I'm thinking of making Prince Batsaikhar's first minister Chua a Five Storms Oni (an ogre mage probably). That way, he can lead the party astray, while whispering corrupting advice to the Prince.
2. Historically (there's an ironic term), ninjas gave up all family ties when they were taken in by a clan. The ninja clan became their 'family'. So Miyaro could be a favoured student of the ninja grandmaster or maybe she's highly respected amongst all the ninja. I do like where you're going with this idea!In this case, I am going with the Basilisk ninja clans, like the Iga and the Koga (who were historical as well!), who sure enough, took in the poor and destitute to train into fearsome stealth warriors, but at the top was a talented bloodline that provided the leadership.
In Minkai, as with all things in Jade Regent, this is falling into chaos, as the Ninja Grandmaster was poisoned (and is currently slowly dying) by Oni-Mask, his son fallen in with the Jade Regent to seek revenge on the oni mask ninjas(not knowing that oni-mask is an appendage of the Regent), and the grand-daughter, loyal to their previous masters, the Amatatsu Emperors seeking out rumours of a lost heir returning to claim her inheritance.
Perhaps the unwitting Gaijin have it in their power to right the things that are out of order? (I figure the Amatatsu Seal might be able to heal the Grandmaster, but what if Oni-Mask decide to attack at the inopportune moment?).
3. I like where you're going with this, though I have gone a different route myself. You're leaning towards that Star Wars feel, too. Doesn't this AP just cry for that? Onis, fiendish blood, foreigners, allies,...
1. Perhaps make him something other than an oni. Even with disguises or spells he might be found out. And manipulative creatures like oni would find great delight in corrupting members of other species to do their bidding. Makes them feel superior. Also, using other humanoids like the core races gives you more flexibility in classes and levels for those npcs.
2. I really like the idea of a mass ninja attack on the party plus their allies at a critical moment. It makes for a very heroic moment. A couple of ninjas with improved disarm or improved steal to...liberate...the Amatatsu Seal at inopportune moments could make for a very memorable battle.
3. Well, the one thing that should be a staple of any eastern adventure is anestors! Norrin could find out his heritage from a spectral ancestor. Perhaps the party passes through a village where one of his ancestors is buried and that night he gets a visitor.
One of my players is runaway stepdaughter of one of ruling daughters of Irrisen. One of another players, without knowing her history, adviced her to make peace with her mother. In last game her player was not present, so I ruled that she was making contact with her stepparent, so now there is another powerful one, who try to gain control of throne of Minkai or anyone sitting on it.
Also, my players charmed and bribed Zaiobe to stay with them until they clear the vaults of Brinewall and opened them together, what rewrote her fate too to serve the throne & lineage. Now players are taking her everywhere, even when she is harpy and wants payment for everything she do.