So, I always liked the idea of Storm King’s Thunder, but I’ve never run it, because it seems so big and unstructured.  I love the idea of these massive Shakespeare-by-way-of-Jack-Kirby surroundings inhabited by these huge, trashy, reality TV personalities.  So I’ve been trying for a long time now to come up with a stripped-down, dollar-store version that I could stick into an ongoing campaign.  I think I’ve finally cracked it, but I want some other opinions.  This is going to be longer than most of my posts, so bear with me please…

Once upon a time, the good dragons gave a Macguffin to their allies, the giants.  Now a good dragon has sent our heroes to the King of the Giants to retrieve the Macguffin.

Calypso, Rani of the Tradewinds, is the whimsical capricious daughter of Megaton, King of the Giants (think Loki and Odin, but there’s no Thor).  She wants to marry Prince Emberforge of the Fire Giants, but Emberforge has told her that they can’t be together because her father would never allow it.  In a fit of pique, she casts a ritual spell that turns all of the storm giant court into goldfish in a big aquarium in the throne room.  As so often happens with tricksters, though, she screwed something up.  She forgot about the hill giant servants, who turn on her and lock her in a tower.  

Now that the King is missing and the Ordering is shattered, Pyroclast, Baron of the fire giants, father of Prince Emberforge, wants to name himself King.  He can’t do so without the blessing of the Gods.  The Oracle knows that Megaton is still alive and can be restored to the throne, so the ambitious fire giant conspires to fake her kidnapping and murder at the hands of the hated frost giants.

So, the adventurers, on a mission to find Megaton, climb the mountain to the cloud castle and fight the hill giants (well, two hill giants, but they’re pretty low level).  They rescue the giant princess who claims ignorance about the disappearance of her father.  

She sends them to Emberforge, bidding him to return with them.  Secretly, she thinks that either Emberforge will marry her and when her father is restored, it will be a fait accompli, or. Emberforge will restore her father and then he won’t be able to deny Emberforge her hand out of gratitude.  What she doesn’t know is that Emberforge told Calypso that they could never be together because of her father, but truthfully, he is in love with Atali, the Frost Giant’s Daughter.

Calypso lends the characters Pegasi for the journey and the Pegasi, under orders to go straight to Emberforge, drop them off in the middle of a battle between the fire and frost giants, in the ruins of a human city halfway between their palaces.  They meet Emberforge on the battlefield.  He tells them why the battle is happening (the Oracle’s kidnapping) and urges them to take shelter.  They’ll talk more after the battle.

They find the Oracle in an old church where she is being held and tormented by a group of orcs, in the pay of Pyroclast.  They rescue the Oracle and show Emberforge the evidence that the orcs were acting on the Baron’s orders.  He confronts his father.  Pyroclast twirls his mustache and runs away.  The Oracle is restored.  The Oracle exposes Calypso (by telling a riddle which I assume my players will solve).  Megaton is restored.  Calypso runs away.  Emberforge and Atali are married.  Megaton gives the players the Macguffin.

I think I have a blind spot for this story after all the time I’ve put into it, but I’ve convinced myself that it’s not more complicated than a soap opera plot, and the players should be able to follow it.  I mean, while it’s happening, they’ll be confused, but when it all falls into place it will be understandable and satisfying.  Am I kidding myself?

Try writing it from the point of view of the players, take out any information that they won't know and see if it still makes sense.  If it won't make sense to them until the end, from their point of view it's just a random story that you retcon filled in the plot holes.

Make sure to play for things you wouldn't expect or want to happen.

The Princess claims ignorance? What if one of them has Zone of Truth or passes an Insight check? Or threatens to harm her? Or goes so far as to actually try to harm her?

What if the players get talking to Emberforge and learn that he doesn't want to marry Calypso? What if they decide not to side with the Fire Giants and try to aid the Frost Giants? What if they dont' go near the battle at all or worse yet, fights both sides because they stomped all over a innocent human village?

Why would they find the Oracle in the first place? And the Orcs, how do they come into this exactly? What if the players don't care about the Riddle? Or what if they fight and either die to or kill Pyroclast? What if the players try and get Embermane and Calypso together?

Again, you need to predict everything if you want a stutured play like this. The other option (and perhaps better option) is to simply have the characters be characters. Have a beneral idea of what they want to do and about how long it would take to happen. If things just wait for the players to arrive to be resolved, it feels less like a world and more like a game.

Good, thank you, this is what I need.

An insight check is basically what I'm counting on.  I want to plant seeds of suspicion.  They need to go along with her for now because they need her father back, but I want them to think there's something hinky about the situation.  If they threaten to harm her she laughs it off, if they actually attempt to harm her, she wipes the floor with them.  They've just had a tough encounter with the hill giants.  

I want them to learn that he doesn't want to marry Calypso (although I'm starting to wonder if that bit isn't just one thing too many).  They can't avoid the battle because that's where the flying horses land, on instructions to take the Players straight to Emberforge.  They aren't high enough level to fight on the front lines for either side, let alone take on both sides.

Yeah, the orcs are a bad idea.  I'm changing it to lava children.  They'll be easier to identify with the fire giants.

Good notes.  Thanks for the input.