I've got a PC whose druid was once an elf, but after a raid was killed and resurrected but now as a tiefling. This also happend to his sister. Currently the party is travelling through a jungle and I've seeded clues to the player about a temple, giving him visions about it and such. I kind of want to make the whole reason he and the sister are tieflings the result of a pact the sister made. He wouldn't have knowledge of the pact until I spring it on him via some RP with another entity or maybe even the entity the original pact was made with.
Does anyone have any other ideas or maybe ideas as to how to construct the story? I have some vague ideas myself but I'd like to inspiration :)
Perhaps not story related, but group management related: are you sure your Player is on board with your writing ( or re-writing ) their backstory on them? Is this their backstory idea, or yours, or a collaboration? Players can be cranky about the DM screwing around with their Character without their knowledge or consent.
Provided you're sure that everyone's on board with this, it comes down to inventing motivations.
Classical Tolkien Elves pretty strongly identify with their metaphysical place in the world, and are perfectly happy "passing into the west" ( either physically by ship, or dying ).
Also, Tieflings are classically associated with the Abyss.
So - provided that the Elves in your Campaign are anything like Tolkien Elves - you'd need something to happen that would threaten, or destroy, something which is so important to an Elf that they are willing to sacrifice not only their life, but their very nature, and their eternal fate.
Family, or the sister might have been a good candidate, expect you've thrown the same fate at her, so saving her can't have been the motivation. The same loss or threat must not only have been that personally important to the Player's Character, but to his sister as well.
What would have been important enough to not only one, but two, Elves, to give up their nature, their eternal fate, and their place in the universe, in order to reclaim or protect it?
Also, think on the being that made the pact with them. It seems unlikely - given that there's a clue that they may be tied to the Abyss - that they revived these two out of altruism. What was their motive? What do they get out of it?
No answers here, but maybe some questions that you can mull over to find the answers you want.
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This is a bit of worrying sentence, unless the him is the character rather than the player.
Is the pact going to effect them in anyway? Is it going to be a side plot of breaking the pact to return as an elf? Do they want to become an elf again?
Also know your table, I know some people don't like it when everything starts focusing on one plqyers journey too long.
Again no answers. But I think id feel a little uncomfortable doing any of it unless the player requested it... and even then I'd worry about them "hogging the spotlight"
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All posts come with the caveat that I don't know what I'm talking about.
The player in question is fine with adding things to the background as long as the core stays the same. The character and sister are both looking for a way back to being an elf, although the sister is currently not present in the game, she's only mentioned in the background. He also wrote this himself, I did not invent the sister or her condition.
My table is fine with character stories, they know they all get their turns whenever it fits. It would become a few sessions of travelling to the location but they're already on an expedition and they decided amongst themselves that they would visit the temple. Plenty of situations and other things on the way for other players to do their own thing and shine.
As for the elf part, I'd like to make it a story arc about breaking the pact. The town shaman/elder brought them back with a reincarnation spell. Maybe he offered up their souls for some reason and they were the unwilling sacrifices? I was looking for a twist like that: someone they trust betraying them.
But I'd also love some new avenues or insights that might make an even better story.
Hi,
I've got a PC whose druid was once an elf, but after a raid was killed and resurrected but now as a tiefling. This also happend to his sister. Currently the party is travelling through a jungle and I've seeded clues to the player about a temple, giving him visions about it and such. I kind of want to make the whole reason he and the sister are tieflings the result of a pact the sister made. He wouldn't have knowledge of the pact until I spring it on him via some RP with another entity or maybe even the entity the original pact was made with.
Does anyone have any other ideas or maybe ideas as to how to construct the story? I have some vague ideas myself but I'd like to inspiration :)
Perhaps not story related, but group management related: are you sure your Player is on board with your writing ( or re-writing ) their backstory on them? Is this their backstory idea, or yours, or a collaboration? Players can be cranky about the DM screwing around with their Character without their knowledge or consent.
Provided you're sure that everyone's on board with this, it comes down to inventing motivations.
Classical Tolkien Elves pretty strongly identify with their metaphysical place in the world, and are perfectly happy "passing into the west" ( either physically by ship, or dying ).
Also, Tieflings are classically associated with the Abyss.
So - provided that the Elves in your Campaign are anything like Tolkien Elves - you'd need something to happen that would threaten, or destroy, something which is so important to an Elf that they are willing to sacrifice not only their life, but their very nature, and their eternal fate.
Family, or the sister might have been a good candidate, expect you've thrown the same fate at her, so saving her can't have been the motivation. The same loss or threat must not only have been that personally important to the Player's Character, but to his sister as well.
What would have been important enough to not only one, but two, Elves, to give up their nature, their eternal fate, and their place in the universe, in order to reclaim or protect it?
Also, think on the being that made the pact with them. It seems unlikely - given that there's a clue that they may be tied to the Abyss - that they revived these two out of altruism. What was their motive? What do they get out of it?
No answers here, but maybe some questions that you can mull over to find the answers you want.
My DM Philosophy, as summed up by other people: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rN5w4-azTq3Kbn0Yvk9nfqQhwQ1R5by1/view
Disclaimer: This signature is a badge of membership in the Forum Loudmouth Club. We are all friends. We are not attacking each other. We are engaging in spirited, friendly debate with one another. We may get snarky, but these are not attacks. Thank you for not reporting us.
"until I spring it on him"
This is a bit of worrying sentence, unless the him is the character rather than the player.
Is the pact going to effect them in anyway? Is it going to be a side plot of breaking the pact to return as an elf? Do they want to become an elf again?
Also know your table, I know some people don't like it when everything starts focusing on one plqyers journey too long.
Again no answers. But I think id feel a little uncomfortable doing any of it unless the player requested it... and even then I'd worry about them "hogging the spotlight"
All posts come with the caveat that I don't know what I'm talking about.
Thanks for the responses so far.
To clear some things up:
The player in question is fine with adding things to the background as long as the core stays the same. The character and sister are both looking for a way back to being an elf, although the sister is currently not present in the game, she's only mentioned in the background. He also wrote this himself, I did not invent the sister or her condition.
My table is fine with character stories, they know they all get their turns whenever it fits. It would become a few sessions of travelling to the location but they're already on an expedition and they decided amongst themselves that they would visit the temple. Plenty of situations and other things on the way for other players to do their own thing and shine.
As for the elf part, I'd like to make it a story arc about breaking the pact. The town shaman/elder brought them back with a reincarnation spell. Maybe he offered up their souls for some reason and they were the unwilling sacrifices? I was looking for a twist like that: someone they trust betraying them.
But I'd also love some new avenues or insights that might make an even better story.