Cursebreakers [Campaign Design]

[SkiBird]

Hey gang, I am starting a new D&D 5E campaign on another play-by-post site. The setting will not be Ravenloft per se, as it will be set in the Forgotten Realms, but it will definitely be have some Ravenloft-y vibes and lean heavily into some dark fantasy tropes.

I was hoping to use this thread to brainstorm / solicit some ideas from you, the fine folks at the FoS.

Here is the generic pitch I used to recruit some players:

In a world of arcane curses and dark magic, a group of individuals has been bound by a malevolent force, each cursed in their own unique way. Now, they must unite to break the chains of these sinister enchantments and face the enigmatic villain behind it all.

As a Cursebreaker, you will delve into a world of magic, intrigue, and twisted destinies. Together with your fellow adventurers, you will uncover hidden secrets, confront dark sorcery, and work to reclaim your lives from the clutches of an unknown malefactor.

Will You Break Your Curse, Or Be Consumed By It?

In my mind's eye, the campaign will revolve around this group of heroes investigating different curses at the behest of a mysterious benefactor. Each time they do, a small clue will point them toward a larger conspiracy ... culminating in the big reveal of the evil force behind all of these curses running amok.

One thing I would like to do is give each of the characters joining the tale a pre-existing curse of some sort.

I have decided that these curses should be themed and have three distinct parts.

1. Something useful that can be modeled with game mechanics
2. Something without game mechanics, rooted squarely in roleplay, that could be either good/bad depending on circumstance.
3. Something negative that can be modeled with game mechanics.

As an example, one of the prospective players will be a shadow sorcerer, so I went with a shadow-themed curse.

[something good] This character may cast Find Familiar as a ritual, but the conjured beast is made of shadow-stuff.
Unfortunately, this character has himself, become a magnet for shadow-creatures that he does not control.
Namely, his own shadow will be an actual shadow (as in, the monster from the Monstrous Manual).
[something to come up in roleplay] It will be enigmatic and mysterious, and sometimes whisper things to this sorcerer ... not all of them true.
[something negative] While it can sometimes be cajoled into acting on the sorcerer's behalf (modeled via the use of high DC social skills) this monster will be more than likely (on a failed roll) to do as it pleases (and it won't always be pretty).

Another player will be playing a reborn character. So I went with a theme of 'bridging life and death' for their curse.

[something good] This character may cast Speak with Dead once per long rest, but
[something rooted in roleplay] The dead will sometimes seek her out of their own accord.
[something negative] The things this character happens to kill do not always stay dead. The proposed plan is to assign a small chance (1-in-20) that each time this character takes a life, the target may rise again immediately as a zombie.

I'm also entertaining at least two other characters ... but I'm a bit stumped on how to model their curse.

The first, a shifter barbarian who will be leaning heavily into a lycanthropic curse. At first glance, I thought this one would be easy (as in, just apply the lycanthropic curse contained in the Monster Manual), but after reading up on how 5E handles lycanthropy ... I'm not so certain because it seems a bit too overpowered and crunchy for my taste.

The second, a paladin/warlock (deity & patron still TBD). I really like the idea of a character sworn to serve two masters and the stakes/drama will be upped by the fact that these two masters' goals will only slightly overlap ... not unlike a Venn diagram. Some goals will align, while others do not, etc. I feel like this character's curse needs to be centered in their being beholden to two opposing forces ... but I'm still mulling this one over. More to follow.

Onward. My question to the FoS is ... What would you change or tweak about the above? Do you have any suggestions for how to run a lycanthropic character that do not rely solely on 'you are now a lycanthrope ... here are your amazing combat stats.'

How about the others?

Once this game gets underway and past the CharGen phase, I'd also like to continue to use this thread to fine tune other aspects of the campaign as well. Recurring villains, plot lines, etc.

Many thanks, guys.

[LeMaxul]

Hey, I was reading this post and your ideas seem very interesting! I know it's been a long time, and I hope your campaign has started and is going well.

I wanted to tell you that including a lycanthrope PC is possible imo. First, you have to account for the level, so I'll suppose the campaign begins at 1. Consider nerfing lycanthropes to be resistant to weapon damage instead of immune, when their CR/level is lower than 5. I think that the damage immunity is the only overpowered thing that lycanthropes have. Lycanthropes have the stat fixing, but I think you can ignore it.

Since the character in question is a barbarian, he'll have resistance to weapon damage anyway while raging, so the hybrid form isn't too far from fighting in rage all the time. If you want to add some caveat to make it more manageable, consider tying the lycanthropic shapeshifting to the character's rage initially.

Lastly, as levels go on, silver/magic weapons and alternative damage types become more common. Depending on the availability and setting, you can even give the character the full lycanthropic immunity (probably at level 9 or later?).

Regardless, I hope your campaign goes well!

[Wolfglide of the Fraternity]

There is an optional Blood Hunter order on DMsGuild that incorporates lycanthropy. That might have useful mechanical information to harvest.

[SkiBird]

Thank you very much for the suggestions, gang.

The game, however, fizzled and died before it got too far underway. It's been my experience that PbP games (whether I am helming them or acting solely as player) tend to wither on the vine more often than they don't.

Eventually, I'd like to be in something that lasts a bit more long term, that would be like catching lightning in a bottle though.

[Wolfglide of the Fraternity]

The game, however, fizzled and died before it got too far underway. It's been my experience that PbP games (whether I am helming them or acting solely as player) tend to wither on the vine more often than they don't.

That's a shame. PbP is certainly a difficult medium. Even the ones that don't wither can drag along at an unsatisfactory pace.