Been kicking this idea around for a bit and wanted some refinement from you fine folks here on the boards.

I haven't written up stat blocks or drawn maps yet - those may or may not be coming shortly.

I invite you to take a look and let me know what you'd do to make this better and more fun for my group (and yours!).

INITIATION

Your group is contacted by Nuru - a Chiss accountant on Nal Hutta. He is requesting your aid to transport extremely precious cargo. As a sign of good faith - and to encourage you to take the job - he has sent an ornately decorated box that holds a remarkably life-like statute of a decapitated gungan holding its own head.

Possible Checks

• Hard Knowledge: Outer Rim - Nuru is an associate and advisor to Ybann, a low-ranking Hutt who is attempting to increase his standing and power.
• Average Knowledge: Outer Rim or Underworld - Ybann is mean, foul and quick-tempered - even for a Hutt. This has served him well in his rise to power, but has cost those closest to him their livliehood and lives when or if they are perceived to have crossed or failed him.
• Hard Knowledge: Education or Core Worlds - The statue is the work of Pleebo, an artist whose work is gaining significant recognition and adoration among the core worlders. Little is known about Pleebo - he has somehow managed to keep his identity a secret, the mystique of which has only added to his acclaim. Similar statues have been known to sell for thousands (4,000) of credits in the core worlds, with the artisan's larger works selling for well into the tens of thousands.

MEETING WITH NURU

If the group agrees to meet with Nuru, they are instructed to head to Bilbousa on Nal Hutta and find a small klava (coffee) tent at the Bilbousa Bazaar, The Oil Slick, which is operated by an old protocol droid. An average Streetwise check reveals the location quickly and easily, otherwise the group has to wander the bazaar and risk gaining the attention of Ybann’s enforcers, who are always on the lookout for newcomers to the area. If they are spotted, add setback dies to later checks (noted below).

Once they find The Oil Slick, they see a Chiss seated near the back of the tent, away from the entrance. The Chiss appears older, with greying hair, and sports the characteristic piercing red eyes and dark blue skin. He indicates that you should join him, and then makes his request.

He wants your help extracting the famous artist Pleebo, who is currently residing here on Nal Hutta. This task requires delicacy, discretion and, potentially, blasters. If the group enquires about payment, he shares that there are those on Coruscant who are willing to pay 10,000 credits for Pleebo’s safe passage. If the group negotiates for more, Nuru offers a piece of Pleebo’s from his personal collection, a life-sized sculpture of a decpitated Chadra Fan holding its own head. He estimates the piece to be valued anywhere from 5,000 to 7,500 credits to the right buyer. If the group asks what such a famous artist is doing on a world like this, he refuses to answer until the group agrees to help.

Once the group agrees to help for either the initial or additional sum, Nuru reveals that Pleebo is, in fact, a Hutt. And not just any Hutt - he is the son of Ybann. He has been perfecting his art without his father’s approval and Nuru fears that Ybann is growing suspicious of Pleebo, as the younger Hutt has shown a complete lack of interest in the more brutal aspects of being a crimelord and has been known to disappear for days on end without a word. Should Ybann grow displeased, it could mean very bad things for Pleebo - and for the art world at large. Pleebo’s reputation is growing, and it is doubtful he can hide his art from his father much longer.

The group will need to infiltrate Ybann’s palace, smuggle Pleebo out and escape Nal Hutta with the Hutt in tow.

THE HEIST

There are numerous ways for the heist to go down - whether through stealthy infiltration, trying to get in good with Ybann to gain access to his palace or outright guns blazing. However the group chooses to plan the heist, here are some possible challenges they will face - apart, of course, from the standard guards and henchmen:

Ybann’s palace is modest, but relatively well-staffed with servants, dancers and groupies. He does have a cache of guards and enforcers, but most of them operate outside of the palace in Bilbousa, leaving the palace itself only lightly defended. It will be difficult to move through the palace undetected, but extremely stealthy groups could stick to the shadows. If they were spotted in the market, add two setback dice, as they have been followed since leaving.

Once they reach/locate Pleebo’s quarters, they must convince the Hutt to come with them - whether by charm (average with a setback) or coercion (hard, upgraded once) - he is relatively cowardly, but is more afraid of his father than the group.

Once Pleebo is convinced to accompany the group, they must then extract him. They will need to help Pleebo with charm and deception checks as he explains where they are going and who these new people are. If the group was spotted in the bazaar, add two setback dice to all checks, as they were already recognized to be snooping around.

In an awful twist of coincidence, as the group heads back to their ship with the Hutt, you overhear a couple of off-worlders commenting on the tacky, base and crude works of this "Ploobu" character. His decapitated statues are a reflection, not of rustic charm, but of the brutal simple-mindedness of the outer rim planets. Roll a discipline check for Pleebo to see how he reacts. If he succeeds, he will shuffle over to debate the “critics” on the finer points of his craft. The party has to then try and convince him to leave (hard, upgraded once charm or coercion - coercion may cause a scene with the critics). If they fail, Pleebo will lose his temper - one trait he has in common with his father - and lift one of the critics from the ground by his neck. This will cause quite a scene among the crowd, who will call for help. Ybann’s enforcers are nearby, so they’ll be the first to respond.

At this point, Pleebo’s departure from the palace has been noticed - apparently, he was under lockdown, as he’s tried to flee before. You can either have enforcers waiting for you at your ship, or ships - I love the Z95 Headhunters, myself - launched once you leave the planet’s surface.

CONCLUSION

Once you escape from Nal Hutta, you need to make your way to Coruscant - the University of Coruscant in particular - to deposit Pleebo. It will take some convincing for them to take the Hutt off your hands - Pleebo will either need to prove that he is who he says he is (which could lead to an adventure of collecting the materials necessary for him to create) or the party needs to be charming, coercive or have the negotiation skills necessary to do the convincing.

Once Pleebo is dropped off, you receive notice that a transfer of credits has been made to your account, and, if negotiated, a shipment notification from Nal Hutta of a large, heavy parcel on its way to your home base.

You know when first reading through this I had this idea that subsequently creeped me out!

Pleebo's art involves a form of carbonite process thats followed by decapitating the unfortunate model to complete the latest piece .

If that's used I could see Pleebo's father being quite pleased with his son's progress but gently insists he follow the family trade a bit more...

I was then thinking what if one of those pieces involved a Chiss girl and the PCs patron wants to know what happened to his missing niece/daughter, etc and this is all about getting Pleebo where he can be encouraged to reveal where his models disappear off to once he's finished his latest piece.

Now what if one of the PCs agrees to become his next model?

I can see this getting a mite grim so I assume you'd want to avoid this until maybe halloween...

So Pleebo's dad sends help because he knows what his son does and fully understands what would happen if the truth behind his artistic style gets out especially where he can't prevent his son being either immediately killed or imprisoned... although certain Imperials might hire his services if he bases his latest creations on a few of their enemies...

Yes maybe this is going a bit too far...

Whoa. That's dark!

I like it, but I kind of pictured Pleebo being like Prince Herbert in Monty Python's Holy grail - a gentle, sensitive soul, more interested in artistic pursuits than his burly father cares for.

That is, of course, until someone critiques his art. Then he goes nuts.

I think your idea is pretty fun, though. And gives the adventure a completely different vibe.

The MMO KOTOR had a sub plot about a Hutt looking to escape his Clan bonds even as far as helping the player in return for their freedom, but that character wasn't an artist of this sort and I can't help wondering why the Chiss patron would want to intervene unless they were hoping to gain a considerable reward in return for their efforts... well making the PC's take the risk but you know what I mean!

You know when first reading through this I had this idea that subsequently creeped me out!

Pleebo's art involves a form of carbonite process thats followed by decapitating the unfortunate model to complete the latest piece .

I imagine the trick to that art is keeping the body in stasis long enough to keep it from slumping after decapitation...

I used a similar idea with my son's campaign...his grandfather owned a mining company but disappeared mysteriously a year earlier, and his Obligation was to find out what happened. What happened was gramp's new partner, a ruthless businessman from Coruscant who through a series of lawyerly tricks and well-placed bribes managed to become the heir to the mine, then staged a convincing "accident" where no bodily remains were ever found. As the plot progressed it was discovered that this guy had done this con several times, sometimes with whole families disappearing. My son's character pretended to be a Baron from Serrano and finally got into the conman's apartment for a business meeting, only to be greeted to an art tour with all the families of his "predecessors" on display encased in carbonite...over 20 of them.

...and then there were fireworks...

Because Pleebo is an anonymous artist, you could throw a twist in at the end and have an imposter present on Coruscant. If you wanted the adventure to go on for a little while longer, that is.

The group arrives and is confronted by the fake, who has somehow proven his identity to the University folk. Now it is up to the party to find out who the fake really is, disprove his claim, AND get to the bottom of why that person is claiming to be Pleebo in the first place...