Firstly id like to say how happy i am to be able to post on these forum again, after over a year of software incompatablity im finally back online properly, and can contribute to discussions again. I have been following the forums avidly over my missing time but have been unable to contribute which has been more than slightly frustrating at times. More importantly i would also like to thank those members who have posted house rules, adventures, podcasts, campagin diaries etc as they have given me a whole stream of ideas, to borrow, steal and twist into my own plots. So Thank You.
Finally after a year of collecting all the suppliments and fiendishly plotting in a darkened room i have the time and players ( ish*) to begin my first 3E campaign and i thought it would be a good idea to get some feedback, and imput and ideas from you guys.
This is the second time i have written this post but unfortunatley my mouse decided to jump me back, so i lost a huge post going into far more detail on my twin story Arcs, so instead i am just going to post a brief summary of my initial adventure to gain feedback, and post again either later tonight or tomorrow filling out what my main plot ideas are. The adventure starts slow, as it will be my first time playing 3E and ive tried to cover various different aspects of the the rules system to find out what i find works and does not. My summary will be brief to keep the post size down but i am happy to go into more detail or explain things more clearly if needed/wanted. Thanks in advance for your feedback, critisims and ideas!!
Very condensed Campagin summary; The overall idea is to have two seperate but joined at different stages story Arcs. One is based around the characters background and personal history. Basically the characters are in possession of a few objects via a mutual now decased friend (Max) that give off clues to the location of an or a series of items that are of vast signifigance to nagash. The PC's will not know the signifigance of the items, and it will up to them how deep the delve into this side of the plot. These items are also sort my a Lamihan Vampire (Lady Ivanva) as well as a former friend of Max and one or two of the PC's who has fallen to chaos. I intend to use this storyline to bring about interesting parts of the PC's history, families and generally try to make the PC's really become life like.
The second story Arc, the main plot/external events involes a Noble Axel Kruger whos family have been descraced for nearly a hundred years, who has turned to chaos, namely the Purple Hand to bring about the disgrace of the family who shamed his own ( The Von Bruner family) so his family can once again rise. The Agents of the Purple Hand have many agents in place across Reikland ready and poised to make this happen (This all links nicely with some minor changes to a good portion of the published adventures) What the Purple hand, and Axel Kruger do not know is that the Arch Magos of the Cult has been murdered and replaced by the Changeling after a misscast ritual, who is using all the powers of the cult to bring Axel into power so that he can supplant him and attempt to destroy the empire from within...
One Final Service Adventure Summary
Brief Background an NPC maximillion Kleg friend to the party was not all he seemed, secretly he worked for the Sigmarite order of Cloaked Brothers, gathering news and information of any threats to the empire, it was during this service he stumbled upon information of the Purple Hand, and in fact a dangerous item and several missives from the cult. Unfortunatley the cult was on to him, and knowing his time was running out he sent the item and missives to Temple of sigmar in Ubersreik for safety, until he would be able to take them to his order in Altdorf. He also sent an accompanying msg to the priests there, saying that at the event of his death that a letter be sent to the PC's who were the only people he can trust outside his order to complete one final service and take the artifacts to his order in Altdorf, the messages also says that as true and dear friends the PC's are all named in his last will which is held by his order. A few days later Max was found dead, a notorious calling card known only as the Hand of Khaine placed upon his body, and enter the PC's. Meanwhile Axel Kruger seeks the return of the contents of the chest for a ritual to bring forth deamonic servants to inhabit the Von Bruner houses within Altdorf so he can give evidence that they are dealing with servants of chaos. Axel has instructed a high ranked Cult leader that was assigined to help with his rise in power to watch the roads anyone bringing said items ( which are various hideous animal parts, candals, human blood and Warpstone, in a locked leadline box) and recover them.
The adventure begins with the PC's recieving word that a former collegue, friend, family member Max Kleg has been murdered. They are summoned to the temple. asked to complete final service.
Episode one 1 is the journey to Altdorf.
first part of the jouney involves is a simple three stage ambush by snotlings, goblins and orcs
the second part is at the end of the first days travel, in a coaching inn called the Ravens rest, which has a series of events, important character introductions and general mayhem. There will be a card game (and a cheat) which ive designed a progress bar for, Axels Agent; Dieterech tries to gather various bit of information from the pc's so he can arrange an ambush as the pc's continue there journey. There is also a NPC called draco who is on the run from an angry nobles thugs, because he deflowered his daughter, later in the night the thugs will arrive and Draco will ask the PC's assistance to help him avoid them. A group of Morrite Monks and there priest Brother Olsen arrive at some point, on route to the town of stromdorf to listen to see if there is any meaning behind stranges dreams priests have been having there. A scout arrives, a foward member of the party of a Lady Ivanava whos on route to Ubersriek, who buys up all the rooms in the Inn for she does not wish to be disturbed. Kicking the PC's out of there room. Then the Lady turns up with a full entrorage of servants, a steward and two hulking Kurgan body gaurds.
the third part of the journey see the Pc's find the two dead bodies of the thugs looking for Draco, and a ambush via some highly incompent outlaws that Dieter hired, having already killed the wrong people once, they can be talked out of via a progress tracker again.
Episodeone end with the PC's completing there jouney and getting the chest into the possession of the Cloaked Brothers, they are given accomadations in the pilgrims rest, and told they will be summoned the following day for the reading of max's last wishes.
episode two;
Pc's are summoned, the order is in disarray, the items have been stolen. PCs are hired to investigate and recover the items.
Via a series of wittness, some red herrings, and a wooden coin found at the scene the pc's discover the gaurds were drugged into sleep by someone within the Tumbling Bones gambling hall in the docks district before they went on duty. Investigations there are directed towards Draco who the previously met (Ranald Priest) and either helped or left at the mercy of thugs, he points them either in gratiutde or at great expense to the pc's to warehouse not far away, where a catburgler halfling is holled up after a job gone wrong.
The PC's find an erratic halfling convinced the Hand is after him. they will just about get him to calm down when two poisoned bolts strike him dead, and a shadow covered figure climbs the building. Roof top chase scene, with prog tracker, various events, such as a warehouse worker finding the body of the halfling and the watch being summoned. The hand of Khaine will escape, but drop a letter from someone asking him to kill the halfling to close off the trail, the letter is marked with unusual heraldry which the pc's can then use to tack it to the Kruger mansion on the outskirts of Altdorf. (I plan to use the Hand of Khaine again in future adventures, and PC's may wish to seek him for revenge over max at a later date)
There are a couple of events taking place over the investigation part of the adventure that dont fit into a time order, one is a kidnap attempt by various members of the hand, late at night when the pc's are either returning or heading out. some thugs are attempting to subdue a noble lady and her escort and carry her off. (shes a minor relative of the von bruners, so Axel wishes to use her as a live sacrasfic. The second event is that at random times the party will be able to make observation checks to see if someone is following them, if there pass hes dissappears the pcs cant make out who it is but he seems familar, its dietier keeping a watch on what they are doing. If the PC's thwart the kidnap attempt, dieter and some cultists will try to drug and kidnap one of the pc's as a sarcrific, if thwarted again he will escape to be used in further adventures.
Episode 3
The pc's will attempt to break into the manor house, which lies in dense woods about an hour south west of Altdorf, subdue the cult stop the ritual going on in the crypt below. For the final fight scene, Axel's ritual will be disrupted, and with a timed progress tracker as the ritual goes wrong Axel will mutate uncontrollabley due warpstone, turning him into a chaos spawn, the result of which starts a fire which will slowly burn the manor to the ground while the pc's fight there way out.
In the aftermath the pc's will be rewarded etc, but after a few days be called to city hall to find them being prosicuted by none other than Axel Kruger, for burning down his property and slander against his name while is was visiting friends in Marinburg......