Needing help with story / Creative Block for Lolth

[FoxxyGrandma]

So, I'm having some trouble with starting a campaign that I've had in my head. I run a lot of horror in my campaigns and I'm trying to veer away from that this campaign. I have this idea to run a drow campagain where a few clerics want to infuse a god (maybe Rovagug or Zon' Kuthun) into a drow priestess to make the pinnacle being of Lolth. I've had thoughts that maybe the drow are looking for pieces of an artifact that will allow them to do this and the pcs will be on a chase around the world to get to these pieces before the drow do. The only thing that I'm having trouble with is how do the P.C.s get involved in the first place and how should I end it..If they get all the pieces before the other drow do, I think that would be anti-climatic with no final boss fight or am I wrong?

[Tinalles]

The PCs get involved because someone in their hometown has an Ancestral Doohickey which happens to be one of the relics the drow need. Either arrange for them to discover a small drow party attempting to steal it so the PCs can intervene, or else have the NPC hire them to fetch it back.

Further investigation -- who are these drow, and why did they want the Ancestral Doohickey? -- leads to the discovery that the Ancestral Doohickey is in fact one of the Lost Relics of Badassdom, and that the drow were carrying holy symbols of Eeeeevil, and also had a shopping list of other Lost Relics of Badassdom to retrieve on orders from Big Mama Nogood. If you can contrive some way to cackle in print, do so.

As for "what if the PCs get the Relics of Badassdom before Big Mama Nogood?", that's easy:

1) There are 13 Relics of Badassdom;
2) Big Mama Nogood only needs 7.
3) Every time the PCs score a relic, the drow score one of the others.
4) The drow score the seventh relic right before the PCs get there, leading to a grueling pursuit to the Dismal Lair of Big Mama Nogood just in time to intervene in her ascension to True Badassdom.

In order to keep things interesting, each relic gives Big Mama Nogood a different ability. Let the PCs discover what the 13 abilities are, and let them choose which relics to go after. Emphasizing that they cannot hope to get them all; they're too far apart and the PCs lack the resources at Big Mama Nogood's disposal. But although they cannot avoid fighting Big Mama Nogood, they can choose what abilities she does not get by cherry-picking Relics.

For a shorter campaign, there are 7 relics and she needs 4.

For a darker campaign, the PCs have the option of using the Relics of Badassdom they recover, but only by paying Terrible Costs.

For a lighter campaign, keep the names as above, and all the drow wear clown hats of whose existence they are unaware.

[Yakman]

Tinalles wrote:

The PCs get involved because someone in their hometown has an Ancestral Doohickey which happens to be one of the relics the drow need. Either arrange for them to discover a small drow party attempting to steal it so the PCs can intervene, or else have the NPC hire them to fetch it back.

Further investigation -- who are these drow, and why did they want the Ancestral Doohickey? -- leads to the discovery that the Ancestral Doohickey is in fact one of the Lost Relics of Badassdom, and that the drow were carrying holy symbols of Eeeeevil, and also had a shopping list of other Lost Relics of Badassdom to retrieve on orders from Big Mama Nogood. If you can contrive some way to cackle in print, do so.

As for "what if the PCs get the Relics of Badassdom before Big Mama Nogood?", that's easy:

1) There are 13 Relics of Badassdom;
2) Big Mama Nogood only needs 7.
3) Every time the PCs score a relic, the drow score one of the others.
4) The drow score the seventh relic right before the PCs get there, leading to a grueling pursuit to the Dismal Lair of Big Mama Nogood just in time to intervene in her ascension to True Badassdom.

In order to keep things interesting, each relic gives Big Mama Nogood a different ability. Let the PCs discover what the 13 abilities are, and let them choose which relics to go after. Emphasizing that they cannot hope to get them all; they're too far apart and the PCs lack the resources at Big Mama Nogood's disposal. But although they cannot avoid fighting Big Mama Nogood, they can choose what abilities she does not get by cherry-picking Relics.

For a shorter campaign, there are 7 relics and she needs 4.

For a darker campaign, the PCs have the option of using the Relics of Badassdom they recover, but only by paying Terrible Costs.

For a lighter campaign, keep the names as above, and all the drow wear clown hats of whose existence they are unaware.

delightful