If a rival on PMP side believed that part of liberating the people was to free the "12 Lords Returned", she could be opening the gate to attempt to call them out to her side, and to her aid.
If she has another artifact of Adrian's bound to her, she might have good reason to believe that she is "Adrian reborn".
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If a rival on PMP side believed that part of liberating the people was to free the "12 Lords Returned", she could be opening the gate to attempt to call them out to her side, and to her aid.
If she has another artifact of Adrian's bound to her, she might have good reason to believe that she is "Adrian reborn".
Ah. Good thoughts!
This opens up another question as to where to begin the adventure.
Has Radbertus already secretly returned and the adventurers are caught by surprise whilst minding their own business?
Does the adventure begin when he has not yet returned but the gate will soon be open?
I lean toward the former. I kind of want the adventurers to be engaged in some other business when they are surprisingly interrupted by something having to do with Radbertus' return. They may not meet him immediately, but perhaps they meet someone from the Paschasians who has seen Radbertus and is heralding his triumphant return.
I'm off to bed now. I really appreciate everyone's time and thoughts. It's really helped me to flesh out this NPC and sketch a framework for this adventure! Please continue with your thoughts if you have more suggestions.
Her reading of the prophecy has her reuniting her people. I had come up with those ideas previous to the post of the prophecy. Perhaps she is descended from an illegitimate child of Adrian's, and she found what she thinks is Impexis from beyond a mountain pass on the PMP. Knowing that twelve lords are foretold to return, she goes to open the portal because she knows she'll need more military might than she can muster on her side. She would likely also fill a complementary role to Radbertus as far as being more a caster, perhaps a hexblade warlock to account for her using her version of Impexis, which could actually be half of the original sword which would become sentient when combined. She may be less inclined to killing the descendants of those who wronged her people than Radbertus and that philosophy difference is what sets the tension between them. Radbertus sees her as soft and only wants to use her as a means to unite the ethnic population. Perhaps he's thinking that he must marry her and that is the noble wedding of the prophecy, when in fact, it is the reunification of Impexis. At least that's one way it could go that would leave a misinterpreted portion of the prophecy. I think it would be interesting if the prophecy came from the mouth of a Blythe that was present at the banishment, though he was clearly being possessed by something else at the time, perhaps the sentience of Impexis after it was sundered.
If you do go with two halves of Impexis, that it's a sentient weapon when whole, and that it was what made the prophecy, Impexis could be "Impexis, the Corruptor". It could be Lawful Evil and influence those who wield it to do evil. That could be the source of the trouble to begin with. The side that Radbertus picked up could be the Evil portion and that's why he's bent on revenge. His rival could have the lawful side, which tells her that it wasn't the fault of the remaining noble families that the Paschasians were banished. She still gets caught up in the prophecy because of her lack of understanding of the complete situation.
Radbertus has returned from Frostfell with a retinue of warriors. Their first goal is to make a statement, to reveal that they have arrived, and to gain support amongst the "warm Paschasians" (ethnic Paschasians). In order to do this Radbertus and his crew have been murdering and burning the castles of several Blythe nobles who live in less populated farming regions. This crime spree has happened quickly and so no one is really sure what's going on. But there are rumors. Some say that Adrian's ghost has returned with the ghosts of his warlocks and are seeking vengeance. Some say it's simply the work of orc raiders from the east. Others claim to have met Radbertus and say that Paschasian nobles have returned from Frostfell.
Lorien (female) is an ethnic Paschasian who believes herself to be capable of embodying Adrian Reborn. She is aware that the gate has been opened (by a natural disaster) and she is aware of Radbertus. Her goal is to recover the other half of Impexis. The sword was split when the Paschasian nobles were banished. Half of it traveled with the nobles to Frostfell and the other half was hidden away along with the baby Dacian who was nephew of Adrian. Lorien descends from Dacian. The half of Impexis that Lorien seeks was lost long ago and is rumored to have fallen into the collection of a Young White Dragon who lives in a glacial lair to the north. She may want to recruit the adventurers to help her recover this blade, but she may not want to reveal her full purposes to them. She may even end up betraying them.
I think my final puzzle is figuring out where the adventure begins. I think a few nobles have already been murdered and their castles burned. Radbertus is in the PMP but not yet fully revealed. Lorien is lurking behind the scenes but has not yet revealed her identity. Where would be a good place for the adventurers to come in? Maybe they are recruited to be part of a militia who guards a remaining noble's castle. Maybe they are recruited to investigate the murders and burnings that have already occurred. What comes to mind for you?
Either option works well. Perhaps Lorien is also hired by the Blythe to protect the castle or investigate the burnings. She suggests that it could be the work of a dragon (never mind that the dragon couldn't do it if it's a white dragon and there have been burnings, a little disinformation to suit her purposes). She goes along with the party to investigate or she suggests that the location the raiders are coming from (or the dragon, whatever story suits her purpose) is from the cave. She is able to acquire her half of Impexis, perhaps because the dragon can feel her kinship to Adrian and it is a guardian that was set over the treasure horde that was left on the PMP. I only say this because the dragon will be too much for the party at low level.
This just leaves the role that Lorien will play. Is she working in conjunction with Radbertus, or is she working counter to him. If she is working with him, this would be a good moment for her to betray the party and they just barely escape (maybe the dragon attacks the party and another NPC casts something like dimension door that the entire party uses to escape.) Afterwards, Lorien is seen riding the dragon of toward the direction that Radbertus and his raiders were last seen going, which could have been from an attack that occurred while they were away from the noble castle, but it failed to kill the target since the NPC that cast the spell to escape was the noble that was the target. The NPC was just posing as a commoner for additional security.
If Lorien is working contrary to Radbertus' purposes, she instead takes the party into her confidence after acquiring half of Impexis. She tells them what she knows and apologizes for manipulating them to her own ends. She then suggests that an attack is planned on the castle that they left from by Radbertus. They arrive to bolster the defense in time to drive of the "cold" Paschasians, but Radbertus notes her presence and decides that he must marry her to fulfill the noble marriage clause of the prophecy based on the fact that she is wielding the other half of Impexis.
If you aren't sure yet what Lorien's motives will be, figure out what the reasoning behind the fact that Adrian's nephew was hidden away along with the half of Impexis. Was Adrian's sibling working with or against him? It's likely that Lorien would be working to fulfill those same goals if she is also a child of prophecy.
If a rival on PMP side believed that part of liberating the people was to free the "12 Lords Returned", she could be opening the gate to attempt to call them out to her side, and to her aid.
If she has another artifact of Adrian's bound to her, she might have good reason to believe that she is "Adrian reborn".
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.
Ah. Good thoughts!
This opens up another question as to where to begin the adventure.
Has Radbertus already secretly returned and the adventurers are caught by surprise whilst minding their own business?
Does the adventure begin when he has not yet returned but the gate will soon be open?
I lean toward the former. I kind of want the adventurers to be engaged in some other business when they are surprisingly interrupted by something having to do with Radbertus' return. They may not meet him immediately, but perhaps they meet someone from the Paschasians who has seen Radbertus and is heralding his triumphant return.
I'm off to bed now. I really appreciate everyone's time and thoughts. It's really helped me to flesh out this NPC and sketch a framework for this adventure! Please continue with your thoughts if you have more suggestions.
Her reading of the prophecy has her reuniting her people. I had come up with those ideas previous to the post of the prophecy. Perhaps she is descended from an illegitimate child of Adrian's, and she found what she thinks is Impexis from beyond a mountain pass on the PMP. Knowing that twelve lords are foretold to return, she goes to open the portal because she knows she'll need more military might than she can muster on her side. She would likely also fill a complementary role to Radbertus as far as being more a caster, perhaps a hexblade warlock to account for her using her version of Impexis, which could actually be half of the original sword which would become sentient when combined. She may be less inclined to killing the descendants of those who wronged her people than Radbertus and that philosophy difference is what sets the tension between them. Radbertus sees her as soft and only wants to use her as a means to unite the ethnic population. Perhaps he's thinking that he must marry her and that is the noble wedding of the prophecy, when in fact, it is the reunification of Impexis. At least that's one way it could go that would leave a misinterpreted portion of the prophecy. I think it would be interesting if the prophecy came from the mouth of a Blythe that was present at the banishment, though he was clearly being possessed by something else at the time, perhaps the sentience of Impexis after it was sundered.
If you do go with two halves of Impexis, that it's a sentient weapon when whole, and that it was what made the prophecy, Impexis could be "Impexis, the Corruptor". It could be Lawful Evil and influence those who wield it to do evil. That could be the source of the trouble to begin with. The side that Radbertus picked up could be the Evil portion and that's why he's bent on revenge. His rival could have the lawful side, which tells her that it wasn't the fault of the remaining noble families that the Paschasians were banished. She still gets caught up in the prophecy because of her lack of understanding of the complete situation.
Alright a bit of an update...
There are two figures.
Radbertus has returned from Frostfell with a retinue of warriors. Their first goal is to make a statement, to reveal that they have arrived, and to gain support amongst the "warm Paschasians" (ethnic Paschasians). In order to do this Radbertus and his crew have been murdering and burning the castles of several Blythe nobles who live in less populated farming regions. This crime spree has happened quickly and so no one is really sure what's going on. But there are rumors. Some say that Adrian's ghost has returned with the ghosts of his warlocks and are seeking vengeance. Some say it's simply the work of orc raiders from the east. Others claim to have met Radbertus and say that Paschasian nobles have returned from Frostfell.
Lorien (female) is an ethnic Paschasian who believes herself to be capable of embodying Adrian Reborn. She is aware that the gate has been opened (by a natural disaster) and she is aware of Radbertus. Her goal is to recover the other half of Impexis. The sword was split when the Paschasian nobles were banished. Half of it traveled with the nobles to Frostfell and the other half was hidden away along with the baby Dacian who was nephew of Adrian. Lorien descends from Dacian. The half of Impexis that Lorien seeks was lost long ago and is rumored to have fallen into the collection of a Young White Dragon who lives in a glacial lair to the north. She may want to recruit the adventurers to help her recover this blade, but she may not want to reveal her full purposes to them. She may even end up betraying them.
I think my final puzzle is figuring out where the adventure begins. I think a few nobles have already been murdered and their castles burned. Radbertus is in the PMP but not yet fully revealed. Lorien is lurking behind the scenes but has not yet revealed her identity. Where would be a good place for the adventurers to come in? Maybe they are recruited to be part of a militia who guards a remaining noble's castle. Maybe they are recruited to investigate the murders and burnings that have already occurred. What comes to mind for you?
Either option works well. Perhaps Lorien is also hired by the Blythe to protect the castle or investigate the burnings. She suggests that it could be the work of a dragon (never mind that the dragon couldn't do it if it's a white dragon and there have been burnings, a little disinformation to suit her purposes). She goes along with the party to investigate or she suggests that the location the raiders are coming from (or the dragon, whatever story suits her purpose) is from the cave. She is able to acquire her half of Impexis, perhaps because the dragon can feel her kinship to Adrian and it is a guardian that was set over the treasure horde that was left on the PMP. I only say this because the dragon will be too much for the party at low level.
This just leaves the role that Lorien will play. Is she working in conjunction with Radbertus, or is she working counter to him. If she is working with him, this would be a good moment for her to betray the party and they just barely escape (maybe the dragon attacks the party and another NPC casts something like dimension door that the entire party uses to escape.) Afterwards, Lorien is seen riding the dragon of toward the direction that Radbertus and his raiders were last seen going, which could have been from an attack that occurred while they were away from the noble castle, but it failed to kill the target since the NPC that cast the spell to escape was the noble that was the target. The NPC was just posing as a commoner for additional security.
If Lorien is working contrary to Radbertus' purposes, she instead takes the party into her confidence after acquiring half of Impexis. She tells them what she knows and apologizes for manipulating them to her own ends. She then suggests that an attack is planned on the castle that they left from by Radbertus. They arrive to bolster the defense in time to drive of the "cold" Paschasians, but Radbertus notes her presence and decides that he must marry her to fulfill the noble marriage clause of the prophecy based on the fact that she is wielding the other half of Impexis.
If you aren't sure yet what Lorien's motives will be, figure out what the reasoning behind the fact that Adrian's nephew was hidden away along with the half of Impexis. Was Adrian's sibling working with or against him? It's likely that Lorien would be working to fulfill those same goals if she is also a child of prophecy.