| Seerow |
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
So I posted... wow was that 4 years ago? About my reshuffling of Kingmaker (here https://paizo.com/threads/rzs2s7yc?Reshuffling-Kingmaker). Between delays and my group swapping campaigns/DMs fairly regularly, as well as my modifications fluffing out what we've played... we're currently done with Book 2.
Which means we're hitting the point where I plan to make more serious changes.
Short version of what I am planning here is:
-Rushlight tournament invites go out.This usually comes in part 5, but I am wanting to use this as a way to introduce the players to local politics, and show them getting recognition as a real kingdom following the defeat of Hargulka.
-Since we are at start of book 3 technically, the Rushlight tournament will not be tied to the attack of Pitax (this time at least). After returning home there'll be a time skip, and a few months later players get a call for help from Varn (who has not vanished!)
-Varnhold Vanishing is going to be pushed all the way to 5, right before or possibly simultaneously with Nyrissa's Blooms. However, I do want the players to take over Varnhold. So at this point, Varn is being raided by Centaurs in response to his settlers heading south and coming too close to Vordrakai's tomb. At this point the PCs being called in to help can choose to ignore Varn (then go take up the ruins of the town afterwards), or go to help (in which case after successfully helping Varn swears fealty to the PCs and they can annex his kingdom). In either case the PCs will need to deal with the Centaurs either to gain Varn's fealty or to successfully claim the remains of his kingdom.
-Once the Centaurs have been dealt with (or possibly simultaneously with it, depending on how evil I feel), the battle of Tatzlford kicks off, starting the events of Book 4. It will then go to Book 5, then eventually loop back to someone crossing a line, waking up Big V, and Varnhold vanishing and all of the fun associated with that starting.
So my major points of concern right now are:
1) Is the Rushlight Tournament enough to hold a whole session by itself? I am planning on doing it as a one shot in the relatively near future even though it's not my turn to DM again yet. Since it's kind of disconnected from the Minotaurs and Book 4 issues, it seems like a good way to set up that political landscape before diving in. I am just not sure it will be enough to fill a 6-8 hour session on its own.
2) In the event that it is not, I am interested in hearing about things to help pad it out. I have so far decided to add at least one new minigame event (Extreme Juggling. I can provide my current write up for it if anyone is interested), though there was a Thief Tower event someone had posted here some time ago and it may get added as well. Looking for any other events that people have created that fit in well (especially interested in anything Mage themed, though I have also considered something tied to Ride/Handle Animal with the menagerie at the tournament), or any encounters (social or otherwise) that would make sense to include before/during/after the tournament.
3) How much am I potentially shooting myself in the foot with the reshuffling of big V? I really feel like he is a bigger more menacing threat than anything we see in stages 3/4, and feels like a more appropriate high level challenge. I am more concerned about storyline setup. Particularly ramifications of the players allying with the Nomen centaurs potentially years before Big V starts doing his thing.
| pennywit |
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
1) Is the Rushlight Tournament enough to hold a whole session by itself? I am planning on doing it as a one shot in the relatively near future even though it's not my turn to DM again yet. Since it's kind of disconnected from the Minotaurs and Book 4 issues, it seems like a good way to set up that political landscape before diving in. I am just not sure it will be enough to fill a 6-8 hour session on its own.
It is, but I recommend some adjustments. A couple ideas:
1) Review the NPCs and the possible plotlines between them, as well as the locations. There might be some potential adventures there.
2) Create some opportunities for your PCs to establish relations with other River Kingdoms, including Mivon, Gralton, etc. If there are some available stakes (maybe BP bumps or potential allies down the road), it gives the event a little more heft.
3) For the actual tournament events, ask your players to temporarily assume the roles of contestants from other kingdoms. One of the chief complaints is that each event turns into thing where one player does his thing while the other players have to watch for 30-45 minutes of real-life time.
4) Consider reviewing some of the intrigue rules for relations with factions, especially Discovery checks and Influence checks. These can provide a framework for interacting with other delegations that are present.
5) Consider having some fey gatecrash the event, just to keep things interesting.