So, i could really use a little bit of Brainstorming to help make the next set piece of my homegame more fun and interesting for my group.
Here is the current scenario:
Team is in a city. They just escaped an enemy underground base. There is a countdown. 3 weeks, as a big military force is charging towards the city to put it under siege, meanwhile a terrorist group is attacking the city and the playres are caught in the middle, trying to stop a much larger escale conflict that could erupt if they can't stop the terrorist group before the army comes knocking on the city doors. Which could be the spark of a much larger civil conflict in the region. The city they are in, is under heavy Siege due to the recent attacks, Guards are on the edge, soldiers are imposing heavy control, entry and exit is forbidden until the Terrorist group is stopped. Players are essentially trapped in the city with little chance of requesting aid from local authorities. Essentially, it's time for the heroes to rise up.
The personal stake :
One of the players has family in the city. Her mother is ill and under treatment in the Medical institution of the city.
The twist :
During the Invasion to the enemy base, the group discovered that the terrorist group has located an Genasi Elemental stone which is a powerful magical source wich they want to use to power their war machines to face the incoming army (which would trigger a proper civil war across the region very likely) . The players know where it is, and if they were able to keep it out of the hands of Terrorists, they could very likely stop their plans and prevent a larger conflict.
The Ticking clock:
The group will be offered the opportunity to chase down the Elemental Stone which has an enemy search party already after it. For that, they will have to go after it, acquire it and return before the 3 week time limit. That's the next leg of the campaing. But before they can do that... they must escape the city in order to begin the chase.
So, what am i looking for?
They just had a quite tense, methodical sneaking mission of breaking into an enemy base and being very sucessful for it. There were traps and multiple potential encounters, and they legit managed to ghost their way through a large dungeon with minimal conflict and solve their issues fast.
So i want to give them an exciting adventure moment. i Know my players, i know they will take the bait of adventure, but i would like to make this fun and intense without it being deadly.
The Terrorist group is aware they exist, and there are smaller units of those groups that would be alert to their presence. The guards will not assist them and being forceful would led to them being tagged as potential criminals in a tense moment. They have very few allies at hand and are able to gain access to their Armored carriage and send messages to other allies.
Terrorist group has access to a few monsters and beasts but nothing you couldn't hide inside a Merchant city.
I would love some ideas, suggestions of quick and simple things i could do to make this section exciting and fun.
i'm not entirely sure what you're asking for. you have NPC group 1 on the calendar and NPC group 2 is souring milk and tying shoelaces together. sounds like the pressure is on. and if the pressure is real then the party probably has the impression of having more things to do than they have time for. but, if i'm reading you right, you want to remove them from the pressure for a brief cathartic romp away from their cares and concerns? well, the flaw there might be if the characters don't feel the pressure relieved. they may have lists of things to accomplish, in which case this could easily come across as a distraction they don't have time for. if they do have time for it, then where's the actual tension? the consequences? or is this the dramatic exit you're asking about, just before the rock hits the hard place?
well, despite saying i don't understand the ask, i'm not one to leave without attempting a solution for the concerns i may have invented... so, they're lacking friends and options in this town. maybe it's time they met some people. is there anyone in town who isn't so keen to stick around to be surrounded, besieged, starved, and pelted with flung boulders? perhaps it's a wealthy jeweler with here-to-fore unannounced heavy-hitting arcane connections that they're loathe to reveal. perhaps they can secretly open a dimensional doorway into a dragon or jinn's cave lair to discuss jewelry commissions, always before with strict instructions not to touch any of the gold lying around in piles 'or else.' also don't tell anyone about the door, but that's out the window when they're caught moving equipment into a corner of that lair they'd swept clean of gold. now, if the players keep a close grip on him, he'll open the portal for others to escape. will they negotiate with the monster on the other side, perhaps clear out some infestation the monster can't reach? will they attempt to slay, delay, or box it in so that people can rush past? does the lair have an entrance near enough to mount delaying raids on the approaching army? ooor, will the party try to stealth it, deeming it too dangerous to even ask? and, most importantly, will everyone be able to keep their hands to themselves?
Maybe you could send in a small team of enemy assassins after them, maybe with some flying creatures to add some additional pressure. As for the stone, if you think they can handle it, have an enemy team, which have an archmage with them, have gotten to the stone first, with the party only a minute or two behind. I think this would add some excitement. But in the end, I think you should just let your creativity fly free, I have been improvising an entire campaign with nothing but the goal and the twist, and I've just been building off of that. I hope that this helps and you and your players have fun. Best of luck to them!
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Hello all!
So, i could really use a little bit of Brainstorming to help make the next set piece of my homegame more fun and interesting for my group.
Here is the current scenario:
Team is in a city. They just escaped an enemy underground base. There is a countdown. 3 weeks, as a big military force is charging towards the city to put it under siege, meanwhile a terrorist group is attacking the city and the playres are caught in the middle, trying to stop a much larger escale conflict that could erupt if they can't stop the terrorist group before the army comes knocking on the city doors. Which could be the spark of a much larger civil conflict in the region. The city they are in, is under heavy Siege due to the recent attacks, Guards are on the edge, soldiers are imposing heavy control, entry and exit is forbidden until the Terrorist group is stopped. Players are essentially trapped in the city with little chance of requesting aid from local authorities. Essentially, it's time for the heroes to rise up.
The personal stake :
One of the players has family in the city. Her mother is ill and under treatment in the Medical institution of the city.
The twist :
During the Invasion to the enemy base, the group discovered that the terrorist group has located an Genasi Elemental stone which is a powerful magical source wich they want to use to power their war machines to face the incoming army (which would trigger a proper civil war across the region very likely) . The players know where it is, and if they were able to keep it out of the hands of Terrorists, they could very likely stop their plans and prevent a larger conflict.
The Ticking clock:
The group will be offered the opportunity to chase down the Elemental Stone which has an enemy search party already after it. For that, they will have to go after it, acquire it and return before the 3 week time limit. That's the next leg of the campaing. But before they can do that... they must escape the city in order to begin the chase.
So, what am i looking for?
They just had a quite tense, methodical sneaking mission of breaking into an enemy base and being very sucessful for it. There were traps and multiple potential encounters, and they legit managed to ghost their way through a large dungeon with minimal conflict and solve their issues fast.
So i want to give them an exciting adventure moment. i Know my players, i know they will take the bait of adventure, but i would like to make this fun and intense without it being deadly.
The Terrorist group is aware they exist, and there are smaller units of those groups that would be alert to their presence. The guards will not assist them and being forceful would led to them being tagged as potential criminals in a tense moment. They have very few allies at hand and are able to gain access to their Armored carriage and send messages to other allies.
Terrorist group has access to a few monsters and beasts but nothing you couldn't hide inside a Merchant city.
I would love some ideas, suggestions of quick and simple things i could do to make this section exciting and fun.
i'm not entirely sure what you're asking for. you have NPC group 1 on the calendar and NPC group 2 is souring milk and tying shoelaces together. sounds like the pressure is on. and if the pressure is real then the party probably has the impression of having more things to do than they have time for. but, if i'm reading you right, you want to remove them from the pressure for a brief cathartic romp away from their cares and concerns? well, the flaw there might be if the characters don't feel the pressure relieved. they may have lists of things to accomplish, in which case this could easily come across as a distraction they don't have time for. if they do have time for it, then where's the actual tension? the consequences? or is this the dramatic exit you're asking about, just before the rock hits the hard place?
well, despite saying i don't understand the ask, i'm not one to leave without attempting a solution for the concerns i may have invented... so, they're lacking friends and options in this town. maybe it's time they met some people. is there anyone in town who isn't so keen to stick around to be surrounded, besieged, starved, and pelted with flung boulders? perhaps it's a wealthy jeweler with here-to-fore unannounced heavy-hitting arcane connections that they're loathe to reveal. perhaps they can secretly open a dimensional doorway into a dragon or jinn's cave lair to discuss jewelry commissions, always before with strict instructions not to touch any of the gold lying around in piles 'or else.' also don't tell anyone about the door, but that's out the window when they're caught moving equipment into a corner of that lair they'd swept clean of gold. now, if the players keep a close grip on him, he'll open the portal for others to escape. will they negotiate with the monster on the other side, perhaps clear out some infestation the monster can't reach? will they attempt to slay, delay, or box it in so that people can rush past? does the lair have an entrance near enough to mount delaying raids on the approaching army? ooor, will the party try to stealth it, deeming it too dangerous to even ask? and, most importantly, will everyone be able to keep their hands to themselves?
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Maybe you could send in a small team of enemy assassins after them, maybe with some flying creatures to add some additional pressure. As for the stone, if you think they can handle it, have an enemy team, which have an archmage with them, have gotten to the stone first, with the party only a minute or two behind. I think this would add some excitement. But in the end, I think you should just let your creativity fly free, I have been improvising an entire campaign with nothing but the goal and the twist, and I've just been building off of that. I hope that this helps and you and your players have fun. Best of luck to them!