One of my players is falling for an NPC in my homebrew campaign who is 100% a civilian- no combat training, no traveling experience, etc. A dangerous situation to be in, no?
I don't want to change that, but I *do* want to involve them in a plot of some sort. A few sessions ago, the NPC had a nightmare about something happening to the PC—now, I sort of want to make that a vision of the future. However, I don't like randomly giving this NPC a prophetic vision; I want to expand it into a deeper plot thread. So, does anyone have an idea of why a completely untrained civilian (who basically works as a teacher's assistant) would be seeing vision(s) of the future? His friend is a cleric of the goddess of fate, and some of his studies involve the pantheon, if that helps, but he's never been religiously inclined himself. Bonus points if this plot thread gives my weakling NPC more than 4 HP.
TLDR: What's an interesting way that I can give a civilian scholar NPC a way to see the future?
Have you decided on a BBEG for the campaign yet? Or at least an intermediate boss? Because maybe these visions aren't coming from the goddess of fate. Maybe these visions are coming from her rival - some long forgotten deity of fate who disappeared ages ago, but who is starting to make a resurgence.
So maybe the evil deity of fate has seen one of the possible futures, and in that future it's your party, or more specifically your party's cleric, who ends up thwarting the deity's plans and preventing him from overthrowing the goddess of fate and retaking her job (his old job). So of course that evil deity needs your party out of the way. How do you do that? Well, direct confrontation may be tricky because the deity is still in his nascent stages of resurgence and doesn't yet have an army to lead. So maybe he's giving the people around your party members nightmares... nightmares that involve the party members dying horrific brutal deaths (or worse) if they follow a certain path. So hopefully those people will convince the party members not to do certain things, not to go certain places, and the BBEG will be free to fulfill his goals without the party getting in his way.
Of course, the party members probably won't just quit adventuring because of a few random nightmares, but maybe they'll alter their plans slightly now and then. Like maybe they'll spend a few extra days in town visiting those loved ones, reassuring them that all will be well. So maybe those little changes end up buying the evil deity enough time to complete his resurgence and to be ready to wage a full scale war against the goddess of fate for control of the Fate of the Multi-Verse. So the longer the party delays, the more the party alters their plans due to the nightmares, the more powerful the BBEG and his army will be when that final confrontation battle happens.
The children did a show & tell to make a display at the school. One kid brought a cool rock that they once found in their great grandma's house. The rock has magical properties which causes people to catch glimpses of the future. Say that the NPC was overworked and fel lasleep at the school one night, and that was when they had the vision!
Try to keep the visions vague to maximise their chances of aligning with what really happens - kind of like Ron Weasley's prediction "you're going to suffer, but you're going to be happy about it" in Harry Potter & the prisoner of Azkaban.
Another option is to have the visions be a malicious attack - the BBEG is sending visions to the NPC to try and throw the party off. "If you go here, you will die" if the BBEG doesn't want them to go there. "If you go here, you'll be safe" if the BBEG wants them to go there. "Your >insert emotional tie here< is being held in >insert remote place here<" to lure the players into a trap.
I often like to emphasize that the PCs are exceptional individuals whose cosmic importance can change the fate of those they come in contact with, much like the concept of ta'veren in the Wheel of Time books. As such, I would tie an NPC's supernatural gift back to your player. Maybe a god wants to indirectly communicate to them, or maybe someone wants to guide the party (for good or ill) in a way that doesn't easily trace back to them. It would depend a lot on what the visions were and who would benefit or suffer as a consequence.
Make it so that the NPC believes that they are having visions of the future, and one even comes true - but actually, they're just having anxiety dreams.
Alternatively, the NPC has also fallen in love with the PC and has made a foolish pact with a talking book they found in the library. The book promised that the PC would love them (the book has no power to grant this, and is lying) if the NPC only recounts passages from the book as though they were prophetic dreams. By enunciating them, the NPC is making them come true. The book is in fact a horned devil that was cursed and turned into a book, where it has lain dormant for over a century. The devil desires only to be free.
Due to the proximity of the NPC to the book, they gain a class and become a Wild Magic Sorcerer as they soak up the book's magic. They now have at least 2 more hit points and the possibility of accompanying the PCs on a mission or two later on.
Because the NPC is now in a relationship with a cleric of the goddess of fate, the NPC opened up be used by said goddess as a way to communicate her will to the world. Look at what you are going to run in the future/near future. Are there some clues that your players might need? The vision may provide some of them. It can also be used as a way to provide them with fame or recognition. This is a great way to hook them into stories.
I did something like this for my party - a prophet had a vision of finding a scroll in a library. Party saved her from an assassination attempt just as she found it, and I am using this as a hook for several different modules and at the end of them all, as a hook for the final showdown against BBEG.
Maiden raged across the North, stormed across the deep Maiden reaved back and forth and sundered Cymrych’s Keep Maiden wakened sailed out, til the skies did weep Storm calmed by twice-born heir, holding thrice-born sleep
Ebon bird to the South does fly, twisting Damh’s light Ebon blood to the hunt does cry, resisting Mother’s sight Maiden smiles on the air, setting children right Reclaimed well by blooded heir, fighting ‘gainst the night
Above the dark, below the light Earth’s children dwindled Forged soils of iron might, Crescent Moon spindled Ancient wyrm of Shadowed night, in the depths swindled Returned to height by learned heir, iron’s fire rekindled
This was created as I read ahead several modules (so many modules) to tie the characters in. All set in the Moonhaes.
Have you decided on a BBEG for the campaign yet? Or at least an intermediate boss? Because maybe these visions aren't coming from the goddess of fate. Maybe these visions are coming from her rival - some long forgotten deity of fate who disappeared ages ago, but who is starting to make a resurgence.
Another option is to have the visions be a malicious attack - the BBEG is sending visions to the NPC to try and throw the party off. "If you go here, you will die" if the BBEG doesn't want them to go there. "If you go here, you'll be safe" if the BBEG wants them to go there. "Your >insert emotional tie here< is being held in >insert remote place here<" to lure the players into a trap.
While I don't want this specific interaction to be one imparted by an enemy, I had not thought about this at all and yet is absolutely something that the BBEGs would be capable of. I love the idea of two warring prophetic influences- one granting beneficial knowledge to the NPC, and the BBEG twisting visions to thwart the party. I will 100% be adding this concept soon- thank you both!
Alternatively, the NPC has also fallen in love with the PC and has made a foolish pact with a talking book they found in the library. The book promised that the PC would love them (the book has no power to grant this, and is lying) if the NPC only recounts passages from the book as though they were prophetic dreams. By enunciating them, the NPC is making them come true. The book is in fact a horned devil that was cursed and turned into a book, where it has lain dormant for over a century. The devil desires only to be free.
While not something that I'm going to use for this plot, one of my players has an absolute weakness for books, and this would be exactly the sort of thing they would do- so this will be used for a PC instead! Thanks!
...the NPC opened up be used by said goddess as a way to communicate her will to the world. Look at what you are going to run in the future/near future. Are there some clues that your players might need? The vision may provide some of them.
I would tie an NPC's supernatural gift back to your player. Maybe a god wants to indirectly communicate to them, or maybe someone wants to guide the party (for good or ill) in a way that doesn't easily trace back to them.
These messages have definitely caused me to go back through and assess the plans and characterization of my goddess of fate, and how/why she may try to communicate with the party and those around them. Thank you!
I replied to everyone in one post to reduce notifications. Overall, still undecided on what I want to do, but I have a ton more to think on and work with than I did before. Thank you so much, everyone! You all get five gold stars and advantage on your next roll. ;)
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Good morning/afternoon/evening, fellow DMs!
One of my players is falling for an NPC in my homebrew campaign who is 100% a civilian- no combat training, no traveling experience, etc. A dangerous situation to be in, no?
I don't want to change that, but I *do* want to involve them in a plot of some sort. A few sessions ago, the NPC had a nightmare about something happening to the PC—now, I sort of want to make that a vision of the future. However, I don't like randomly giving this NPC a prophetic vision; I want to expand it into a deeper plot thread. So, does anyone have an idea of why a completely untrained civilian (who basically works as a teacher's assistant) would be seeing vision(s) of the future? His friend is a cleric of the goddess of fate, and some of his studies involve the pantheon, if that helps, but he's never been religiously inclined himself. Bonus points if this plot thread gives my weakling NPC more than 4 HP.
TLDR: What's an interesting way that I can give a civilian scholar NPC a way to see the future?
Thanks everyone!
Have you decided on a BBEG for the campaign yet? Or at least an intermediate boss? Because maybe these visions aren't coming from the goddess of fate. Maybe these visions are coming from her rival - some long forgotten deity of fate who disappeared ages ago, but who is starting to make a resurgence.
So maybe the evil deity of fate has seen one of the possible futures, and in that future it's your party, or more specifically your party's cleric, who ends up thwarting the deity's plans and preventing him from overthrowing the goddess of fate and retaking her job (his old job). So of course that evil deity needs your party out of the way. How do you do that? Well, direct confrontation may be tricky because the deity is still in his nascent stages of resurgence and doesn't yet have an army to lead. So maybe he's giving the people around your party members nightmares... nightmares that involve the party members dying horrific brutal deaths (or worse) if they follow a certain path. So hopefully those people will convince the party members not to do certain things, not to go certain places, and the BBEG will be free to fulfill his goals without the party getting in his way.
Of course, the party members probably won't just quit adventuring because of a few random nightmares, but maybe they'll alter their plans slightly now and then. Like maybe they'll spend a few extra days in town visiting those loved ones, reassuring them that all will be well. So maybe those little changes end up buying the evil deity enough time to complete his resurgence and to be ready to wage a full scale war against the goddess of fate for control of the Fate of the Multi-Verse. So the longer the party delays, the more the party alters their plans due to the nightmares, the more powerful the BBEG and his army will be when that final confrontation battle happens.
Just my 2 c.p.
Anzio Faro. Protector Aasimar light cleric. Lvl 18.
Viktor Gavriil. White dragonborn grave cleric. Lvl 20.
Ikram Sahir ibn-Malik al-Sayyid Ra'ad. Brass dragonborn draconic sorcerer Lvl 9. Fire elemental devil.
Wrangler of cats.
The children did a show & tell to make a display at the school. One kid brought a cool rock that they once found in their great grandma's house. The rock has magical properties which causes people to catch glimpses of the future. Say that the NPC was overworked and fel lasleep at the school one night, and that was when they had the vision!
Try to keep the visions vague to maximise their chances of aligning with what really happens - kind of like Ron Weasley's prediction "you're going to suffer, but you're going to be happy about it" in Harry Potter & the prisoner of Azkaban.
Another option is to have the visions be a malicious attack - the BBEG is sending visions to the NPC to try and throw the party off. "If you go here, you will die" if the BBEG doesn't want them to go there. "If you go here, you'll be safe" if the BBEG wants them to go there. "Your >insert emotional tie here< is being held in >insert remote place here<" to lure the players into a trap.
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I often like to emphasize that the PCs are exceptional individuals whose cosmic importance can change the fate of those they come in contact with, much like the concept of ta'veren in the Wheel of Time books. As such, I would tie an NPC's supernatural gift back to your player. Maybe a god wants to indirectly communicate to them, or maybe someone wants to guide the party (for good or ill) in a way that doesn't easily trace back to them. It would depend a lot on what the visions were and who would benefit or suffer as a consequence.
My homebrew subclasses (full list here)
(Artificer) Swordmage | Glasswright | (Barbarian) Path of the Savage Embrace
(Bard) College of Dance | (Fighter) Warlord | Cannoneer
(Monk) Way of the Elements | (Ranger) Blade Dancer
(Rogue) DaggerMaster | Inquisitor | (Sorcerer) Riftwalker | Spellfist
(Warlock) The Swarm
Make it so that the NPC believes that they are having visions of the future, and one even comes true - but actually, they're just having anxiety dreams.
Alternatively, the NPC has also fallen in love with the PC and has made a foolish pact with a talking book they found in the library. The book promised that the PC would love them (the book has no power to grant this, and is lying) if the NPC only recounts passages from the book as though they were prophetic dreams. By enunciating them, the NPC is making them come true. The book is in fact a horned devil that was cursed and turned into a book, where it has lain dormant for over a century. The devil desires only to be free.
Due to the proximity of the NPC to the book, they gain a class and become a Wild Magic Sorcerer as they soak up the book's magic. They now have at least 2 more hit points and the possibility of accompanying the PCs on a mission or two later on.
Because the NPC is now in a relationship with a cleric of the goddess of fate, the NPC opened up be used by said goddess as a way to communicate her will to the world. Look at what you are going to run in the future/near future. Are there some clues that your players might need? The vision may provide some of them. It can also be used as a way to provide them with fame or recognition. This is a great way to hook them into stories.
I did something like this for my party - a prophet had a vision of finding a scroll in a library. Party saved her from an assassination attempt just as she found it, and I am using this as a hook for several different modules and at the end of them all, as a hook for the final showdown against BBEG.
Maiden raged across the North, stormed across the deep
Maiden reaved back and forth and sundered Cymrych’s Keep
Maiden wakened sailed out, til the skies did weep
Storm calmed by twice-born heir, holding thrice-born sleep
Ebon bird to the South does fly, twisting Damh’s light
Ebon blood to the hunt does cry, resisting Mother’s sight
Maiden smiles on the air, setting children right
Reclaimed well by blooded heir, fighting ‘gainst the night
Above the dark, below the light Earth’s children dwindled
Forged soils of iron might, Crescent Moon spindled
Ancient wyrm of Shadowed night, in the depths swindled
Returned to height by learned heir, iron’s fire rekindled
This was created as I read ahead several modules (so many modules) to tie the characters in. All set in the Moonhaes.
While I don't want this specific interaction to be one imparted by an enemy, I had not thought about this at all and yet is absolutely something that the BBEGs would be capable of. I love the idea of two warring prophetic influences- one granting beneficial knowledge to the NPC, and the BBEG twisting visions to thwart the party. I will 100% be adding this concept soon- thank you both!
While not something that I'm going to use for this plot, one of my players has an absolute weakness for books, and this would be exactly the sort of thing they would do- so this will be used for a PC instead! Thanks!
These messages have definitely caused me to go back through and assess the plans and characterization of my goddess of fate, and how/why she may try to communicate with the party and those around them. Thank you!
I replied to everyone in one post to reduce notifications. Overall, still undecided on what I want to do, but I have a ton more to think on and work with than I did before. Thank you so much, everyone! You all get five gold stars and advantage on your next roll. ;)