Twilight's Children Campaign Log: Session 14

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Finally all caught up. Session 14's Journal is now up at the usual place:

http://themistway.com/

Once again, with optional DM's commentary.

Featuring:
The Voice of Azalin Rex
and Deus ex Machina

After last session's climactic battle, a bit of a rebuilding session, and a bit of denouement, in an otherwise one-shot adventure. Starting to bait new hooks for "Chapter 2" of the campaign.

Now that I'm all up to date, I'll be going back soon to add DM's Commentary to all the previous sessions, and write a few of the adventures up as formal modules.

Comments always welcome...

[Joël of the FoS]

Hey!

Nice read as usual. It's fun how you take great length into using your PC's background in the story.

Fun to see the identify spell used that way, i.e. with a vision of the item creation process or history. I'll use it too

Quite amazing what you did with the Gears. That's pretty cool. And it's a good sign of the usefulness of these collective minds on these boards

And finally great stuff with Suriana. It's always fun to see a PC's personality getting more and more complex. I wish all my players would have this impulse.

Well done!

Joël

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Nice read as usual. It's fun how you take great length into using your PC's background in the story.

Thank you very much. That was the goal from the beginning with this campaign, and I found that once I started doing things that way, it became easier and easier. If I want the PC's to go somewhere, I just mention some connection to Gustav and they go. And as I detailed the pasts of the parent characters, it gave me more and more stuff to work with.

The only major trouble I've had doing it this way is that it's hard to give all the characters equal focus. I think that Kerri having joined up just 3 sessions later than the others has unfortunately given her the short end of the stick, because all the major plot points from the original 3 players were already gelled together in my mind. It's been tough to get a handle on her backstory, and work it in. I think that's starting to be remedied as I work in more Andres, but it's taken a while to reach this point, and I also wanted to do some stuff with her herbalist grandmother and some connection to Hala, but never really got far with that. (I have trouble getting the right feel for the Halan witches).

Also, Leif is a source of trouble because his backstory lies in Nidala. So it's always a long, long term goal to get there. So I've attempted to use Elena's footprint in the core (in Southmoore and Vallaki) and hints of the Shadowborn family (in Southmoore and Daglan) to keep the Nidala story in mind. And I've tried to use Gondegal and Leif's father to give him some non-Nidala spotlight, but it's still problematic.

And quite frankly, I'm not 100% sure what to do when I get there. Aside from "attempt to overthrow Elena," (which I don't want to do) I don't know what adventures are to be had there. I think Leif's mother was a priestess of Belenus who discovered that "Banemaw the dragon" was a sham, and had to flee the domain. And Ludovic's never mentioned father is actually going to crop up there too. But aside from that, and Bane of the Shadowborn and (ugh!) Light in the Belfry, I've got nothing. :/ After all the buildup to get there, I'd love to do something that's not anticlimax when we finally reach it.

Fun to see the identify spell used that way, i.e. with a vision of the item creation process or history. I'll use it too

I first did this with the Crown of Souls, and then decided to expand on it and do it whenever possible. Anything to give magic items more history and specialness is a good thing, IMHO. Also, I'm trying to build up Ludovic as the "crazy vision" guy, loading him up with all sorts of mystical powers until he goes nuts or is branded a Dukkar. (he's actually a product of his mother's plan to breed an "anti-Dukkar", but that's another story...)

Quite amazing what you did with the Gears. That's pretty cool. And it's a good sign of the usefulness of these collective minds on these boards

I absolutely, 100%, could not have done that adventure without the help of this board. No question about it, I just picked all the good ideas I could find and mashed them together.

And finally great stuff with Suriana. It's always fun to see a PC's personality getting more and more complex. I wish all my players would have this impulse.l

It's quite funny actually how that worked out. The player who plays Samuel, Jerrard, and Suriana lives halfway across the country. He's a good friend and former DM for the group. When we first started the campaign, we never thought he'd be able to join us, but his work started to bring him nearby on an occaisional basis, and I let him join in, with the understanding that his character would be a pseudo-NPC, would be unrelated to the plot (since I had 4 other PC's already vying for attention) and would come and go as he did. (We would schedule playing based on everyone else's schedule, and if he could make it, great. If not, no big deal.) It just so happened that he ended up being able to make 5 sessions in a row (Sessions 5-9). As promised, I didn't make much effort at all to do anything with Jerrard and Samuel's backstory. But then, he found himself with a lot of time on his hands and decided to create a new character (Suriana). And because he had a lot of time on his hands, and wasn't able to play for a while, he threw himself into really solidly developing her story. So when he was finally able to play her, I really couldn't help but work her into a more major role. And now that he has a nice juicy character to work with.... he has a newborn son, and is unlikely to be able to play for a while again....

Funny how real life has such an impact on RPG life.


Anyway, thanks for reading, and thanks for the comments. all feedback is appreciated.

[DeepShadow of FoS]

Also, Leif is a source of trouble because his backstory lies in Nidala. So it's always a long, long term goal to get there. So I've attempted to use Elena's footprint in the core (in Southmoore and Vallaki) and hints of the Shadowborn family (in Southmoore and Daglan) to keep the Nidala story in mind. And I've tried to use Gondegal and Leif's father to give him some non-Nidala spotlight, but it's still problematic.

And quite frankly, I'm not 100% sure what to do when I get there. Aside from "attempt to overthrow Elena," (which I don't want to do) I don't know what adventures are to be had there. I think Leif's mother was a priestess of Belenus who discovered that "Banemaw the dragon" was a sham, and had to flee the domain. And Ludovic's never mentioned father is actually going to crop up there too. But aside from that, and Bane of the Shadowborn and (ugh!) Light in the Belfry, I've got nothing. :/ After all the buildup to get there, I'd love to do something that's not anticlimax when we finally reach it.

I can give you plenty of ideas! Would you like them here, or should we start a separate thread? Did I miss the "Nidala adventure hook thread" or has that not come around yet?

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

I can give you plenty of ideas! Would you like them here, or should we start a separate thread? Did I miss the "Nidala adventure hook thread" or has that not come around yet?

I don't think it's been done. If so, it hasn't been archived it the adventure hook bank yet. I'd be glad to hear anything you've got. I'm at least several months from really needing it, but it's helpful to plan ahead.

Joel, it doesn't look like any adventure hook thread is running currently. Can we make a request for a Nidala/Shadowlands thread?

[Joël of the FoS]

Well, I was waiting for the quiet summer period to end to bring back the "hook" threads. I will do it soon, and sure, this cluster is a good idea.

Joël

[DeepShadow of FoS]

IMO the most useful start for Nidalan adventures is the Red Wolf (BoShadows), the Nidalan Knight of the Shadows. He leads a group of rebels, most of them escapees from Elena's prison, like himself. His child is foretold to be a paladin, and he keeps the secret of how he and the others escaped from Elena's prison.

With that added to what's already been said, let me lay out some other ideas:

--Captive!: Elena closed the borders while the PC's were traveling through, and one of their traveling companions pressed through the borders and wound up in the dungeon. Now the PC's must stage a dangerous rescue operation, and the quickest way into the dungeon is to follow their freind into the border....

--Captive II: A trusted friend (perhaps the same as the previous hook) has inexplicably started serving Elena. The PC's discover their friend is under a spell, and now face a more complex rescue of someone who doesn't want to be rescued.

--Duck Test: A trio of Halan witches has dared to start a hospice in Elena's territory, and the PC's are called in to help the fledgeling hospice destroy an ancient hag. In fact, the hag is a good-aligned brujah mentioned in VRGtW (reputed to be in the Shadowlands). Gondegal has come to the aid of the Halans as he has done in the past, but he and the witches are being duped into killing a good creature. One of the Halans knows the truth of the hag's nature, but would rather see it destroyed in order to keep future hag-hunts uncompromised by moralizing. Perhaps as an added complication, the good hag is being framed by an evil creature--perhaps a spectral hag?

--What Dragon?: Banemaw is a lie...or is he? A fugued draconic creature (wyvern, firedrake, perhaps a real dragon) has appeared out of the Mists to the East of the Theospines and started attacking villages under Elena's protection. The Red Wolf and his men have ventured into a physically and morally dangerous ground: they have researched the creature's origins and weaknesses, and rather than try to kill it, they would prefer to keep it around! The creature has allergens and/or zeitgebers that they can use to protect whole villages (see the Dragon ecology of the wyvern for an example), and Elena's lies become more and more transparent the longer the false Banemaw is around. The PC's can help spread the secret of protection to endangered villages, or go against the Red Wolf's wishes and try to slay the 'dragon' for good. Note that slaying 'Banemaw' might loosen Elena's grip on the villages, if the corpse stays around long enough to show people.

--THAT Dragon!!: Fear of Banemaw has actually created a draconic bogeyman (DT&DL). Elena has actually killed the creature multiple times, and she's growing more and more certain that it cannot stay dead because it is her own lie given flesh--which is sort of correct. She calls on the PC's and confides in them that the dragon keeps returning from the dead, and charges them with researching how to slay the dragon for good. Of course, she gives them "research assistants" who are loyal to her, and if they discover any of her dirty secrets in the course of their research, she'll do her best to have them killed.

--The secret escape: The Red Wolf's closely guarded secret is not a secret passage out of the dungeons, but the truth about one of Elena's most trusted servants. Once a prisoner himself, the man has been stricken with permanent madness by Elena's ministrations and afflicted with multiple personalities. Only the dominant personality--a torturer and jailor--is affected by Elena's charm effect, and some of the others are quite helpful. The Red Wolf took great pains to guard the man's secret, not only in the hopes that others might escape the same way, but in the hopes that someday he might be able to use this "blind spot" against Elena. The PC's are called in to help protect the man's secret, or perhaps to finally exploit it against Elena.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Just a quick note to anyone reading our journals... As promised, I've been going back and adding DM Commentary to the older Sessions. Session 1 and 2 are now done and posted. Behind the scenes info and ideas, bibliography info, and explanations of subtle references....

http://themistway.com/

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Just an update... I've got DM's Commentary up to Session 8 now. The usual place.

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

progress report: DM commentary for sessions 9 and 10 now up. Only 2 sessions left uncommented now.

[Joël of the FoS]

Interesting!

Those who haven't read Ron's campaign should

One of the things I like is the music you played. Gives me ideas.

Joël

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Phew... finally caught up. I just put up sessions 11 and 12. Now every journal has DM's commentary.

Thanks for the compliment, Joel. And thanks also for your list of canon and fanmade material excel file. It's made looking up my sources for bibliography purposes much easier than it used to be. (PS - you seem to be misssing the stitched creatures from VRGttWD in that file)

We've played sessions 15 and 16 already. I'll be starting on writing journals w/commentary for those very soon.

[Joël of the FoS]

(PS - you seem to be misssing the stitched creatures from VRGttWD in that file)

Oh? It's in my list, under monsters:

VRG tt Walk. Dead 110 Stitched, obedient dead

---

I'm working on a v2 with 2e RL stuff, as well as interesting miscellaneous stuff from Wotc (Libris Mortis, etc.)

Joël

[Gonzoron of the FoS]

Huh. Strange. I see it there now. Maybe I misspelled it when searching the other day. Nevermind.