I am currently running LMoP (Lost Mines of Phandelver) with the intention of linking into HoTDQ (Hoard of The Dragon Queen) and eventually TRoT (The Rise of Tiamat) The Dragon Venomfang and The Dragon Cultists in Thundertree of LMoP seem like the perfect opportunity to foreshadow but I'm having difficulty figuring out how and what hints/info I can/should let slip.
Namely What do the Cultists and the Dragon know and how might the players get that info
What is the info? The cult of the dragon is changing direction from trying to turn Dragons into Dragon Liches to fulfill a prophesy The cult of the dragon is recruiting allies to go on raids to amass plunder in the future The cult aims to bring Tiamat back into the world The cult has been hunting for Dragon Masks
Thanks for any suggestions comments its very much be appreciated
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“It cannot be seen, cannot be felt, Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt, It lies behind stars and under hills, And empty holes it fills, It comes first and follows after, Ends life, kills laughter.” J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
Welcome! Disclaimer: I'm not trying to "tell" you how to do anything -- fit your game and ideas to what you and your table like :)
Foreshadowing isn't the only device you can use here. Since you are considering going from LMoP to HoTDQ, consider how all this will fit in your world.
What is Venomfang's motivation for being in Thundertree? Was it driven out of another area because of events related to HoTDQ? is it trying to position itself to improve standing?
Perhaps it's aware of LMoP and is trying to find the entrance. From your info section, here are a few thoughts.
You could drop some lore, perhaps from the druid at Thundertree, that the legendary mine has a great power source -- a font of magical energy.
PCs could later learn that this could help in power the turn from dragons to dracoliches. You could set up a scenario where the PCs have to defend the mine later.
Are the cultists there worshiping Venfomfang, threatening VF, or trying to convince VF? Perhaps they have been sent by a more powerful dragon to "talk" with VF.
The aims of the cult can be slowly explained later.
From a story perspective, think of using LMoP to:
Get the characters working together.
Understand both the players and characters motivations.
Establish that dragons are around.
Establish something is making dragons more active.
Perhaps give the characters some potential allies.
Drop some breadcrumbs on different trails for the charactters to follow, see which ones your party gravitates to and craft the story that way.
TLDR: think of the motivations for why (a) venomfang is there and (b) why cultists are there and (c) how that relates to your greater world. Consider using the mines themselves as a clue or launching point into the next phase of your campaign. Understanding the "why" of your antagonists will help you react to the chaos that normal parties create as they take unanticipated paths in attempting to navigate the story.
Hope that wasn't too discombobulated and that it helps.
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"An' things ha' come to a pretty pass, ye ken, if people are going to leave stuff like that aroound where innocent people could accidentally smash the door doon and lever the bars aside and take the big chain off'f the cupboard and pick the lock and drink it!"
Thanks Koradgee for the excellent advice, I'm quite clear on the plot of LMoP and the LMoP motivations of Venomfang and Cultists though I've added Sunless Citadel behind thunder tree and the kolbolts serving Venomfang bidding... but what I'm really puzzling over is how I can add some of the HoTDQ and TRoT plot into this encounter at Thundertree
ie Should I give the players the opportunity to listen in on an exchange between the Cultist and Venomfang were Venomfang is dismissive about all the cult wants is to make undead dragons and why on earth should he a young dragon want to become a young undead dragon, to then have the cultists imploring how wise the dragon is and yes exactly thats is why the cult no longer does that sort of thing but aims to bring back Tiamat
“It cannot be seen, cannot be felt, Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt, It lies behind stars and under hills, And empty holes it fills, It comes first and follows after, Ends life, kills laughter.” J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
First, you can have some of that information be conveyed by the druid (if your party finds him). When I run LMoP I often play VF as one who delights in the pain of others, so I often have him have the druid dead/dying in VFs tower. If the party saves the druid he may be able to tell them that the cult was trying to recruit VF.
Another option, is that the party could see VF destroy some of the cultists, or, perhaps better, they could find a scarred cultist "survivor". If the party doesn't know that that is a cultist, they could be sympathetic to the cultists plight.
You don't have to establish everything in the one encounter, just have some morsels for the party to chew on and potentially investigate. Ie: What is the cult up to, why were they here?
You could even have VF gloat about destroying the cultists and their "impossible dream" -- or something like that. It still depends on what persona you give VF.
Cheers!
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"An' things ha' come to a pretty pass, ye ken, if people are going to leave stuff like that aroound where innocent people could accidentally smash the door doon and lever the bars aside and take the big chain off'f the cupboard and pick the lock and drink it!"
Oh that's a good one I like the idea of a gloating over confident Venomfang spilling the beans on the cultists "impossible dream" because he assumes the players are just another bunch of groveling worms come to persuade him with cheap baubles to join the cause Thanks again Koradgee
“It cannot be seen, cannot be felt, Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt, It lies behind stars and under hills, And empty holes it fills, It comes first and follows after, Ends life, kills laughter.” J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
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I am currently running LMoP (Lost Mines of Phandelver) with the intention of linking into HoTDQ (Hoard of The Dragon Queen) and eventually TRoT (The Rise of Tiamat)
The Dragon Venomfang and The Dragon Cultists in Thundertree of LMoP seem like the perfect opportunity to foreshadow but I'm having difficulty figuring out how and what hints/info I can/should let slip.
Namely What do the Cultists and the Dragon know and how might the players get that info
What is the info?
The cult of the dragon is changing direction from trying to turn Dragons into Dragon Liches to fulfill a prophesy
The cult of the dragon is recruiting allies to go on raids to amass plunder in the future
The cult aims to bring Tiamat back into the world
The cult has been hunting for Dragon Masks
Thanks for any suggestions comments its very much be appreciated
“It cannot be seen, cannot be felt, Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt, It lies behind stars and under hills, And empty holes it fills, It comes first and follows after, Ends life, kills laughter.” J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
Welcome!
Disclaimer: I'm not trying to "tell" you how to do anything -- fit your game and ideas to what you and your table like :)
Foreshadowing isn't the only device you can use here. Since you are considering going from LMoP to HoTDQ, consider how all this will fit in your world.
What is Venomfang's motivation for being in Thundertree? Was it driven out of another area because of events related to HoTDQ? is it trying to position itself to improve standing?
Perhaps it's aware of LMoP and is trying to find the entrance. From your info section, here are a few thoughts.
From a story perspective, think of using LMoP to:
TLDR: think of the motivations for why (a) venomfang is there and (b) why cultists are there and (c) how that relates to your greater world. Consider using the mines themselves as a clue or launching point into the next phase of your campaign. Understanding the "why" of your antagonists will help you react to the chaos that normal parties create as they take unanticipated paths in attempting to navigate the story.
Hope that wasn't too discombobulated and that it helps.
"An' things ha' come to a pretty pass, ye ken, if people are going to leave stuff like that aroound where innocent people could accidentally smash the door doon and lever the bars aside and take the big chain off'f the cupboard and pick the lock and drink it!"
Thanks Koradgee for the excellent advice, I'm quite clear on the plot of LMoP and the LMoP motivations of Venomfang and Cultists though I've added Sunless Citadel behind thunder tree and the kolbolts serving Venomfang bidding... but what I'm really puzzling over is how I can add some of the HoTDQ and TRoT plot into this encounter at Thundertree
ie Should I give the players the opportunity to listen in on an exchange between the Cultist and Venomfang were Venomfang is dismissive about all the cult wants is to make undead dragons and why on earth should he a young dragon want to become a young undead dragon, to then have the cultists imploring how wise the dragon is and yes exactly thats is why the cult no longer does that sort of thing but aims to bring back Tiamat
“It cannot be seen, cannot be felt, Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt, It lies behind stars and under hills, And empty holes it fills, It comes first and follows after, Ends life, kills laughter.” J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again
You're welcome!
A few options come to mind.
First, you can have some of that information be conveyed by the druid (if your party finds him). When I run LMoP I often play VF as one who delights in the pain of others, so I often have him have the druid dead/dying in VFs tower. If the party saves the druid he may be able to tell them that the cult was trying to recruit VF.
Another option, is that the party could see VF destroy some of the cultists, or, perhaps better, they could find a scarred cultist "survivor". If the party doesn't know that that is a cultist, they could be sympathetic to the cultists plight.
You don't have to establish everything in the one encounter, just have some morsels for the party to chew on and potentially investigate. Ie: What is the cult up to, why were they here?
You could even have VF gloat about destroying the cultists and their "impossible dream" -- or something like that. It still depends on what persona you give VF.
Cheers!
"An' things ha' come to a pretty pass, ye ken, if people are going to leave stuff like that aroound where innocent people could accidentally smash the door doon and lever the bars aside and take the big chain off'f the cupboard and pick the lock and drink it!"
Oh that's a good one I like the idea of a gloating over confident Venomfang spilling the beans on the cultists "impossible dream" because he assumes the players are just another bunch of groveling worms come to persuade him with cheap baubles to join the cause
Thanks again Koradgee
“It cannot be seen, cannot be felt, Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt, It lies behind stars and under hills, And empty holes it fills, It comes first and follows after, Ends life, kills laughter.” J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again