Sometimes you and your gaming group need a break from the
main story of the campaign you are running.
This can be especially true after a really heavy part of the story
happens. Even the darkest and gloomiest
shows on television have an occasional funny episode or they wind up being the
fodder for angst ridden teenagers. This
is not a successful model unless you are writing a series for the CW.
This week I will present some light hearted plot ideas for a
game master to use to break up the heavier stories of their campaigns. They can also be use as part of a campaign
that is lighter in tone. Of course just
because a story starts out light does not mean it does not have a darker end as you will see.
I had framed them around a fantasy theme but with some adjustment
they should be usable in other types of games.
Idea #1
Hook – A young
girl approaches the party and asks them if they will help her find her dog,
Fluffy.
Line – The dog
ran into an abandon mansion that the girl is not allowed to go into. The girl is a daughter of a noble that the
party has been trying to get something from.
Use this to leverage the players in to the story if they are not so
inclined to help the girl when she asks for their help.
Sinker – The mansion
is a base for a smuggling ring. The dog is a small terrier and should be able
to get itself into and around things that make it difficult for the party
member follow it. Use the dog to lead
the party through the building to the smugglers den by the most precarious
route. Things like rotten floors should
give way under the characters after the dog goes across the area and the characters
should at times be able to hear the dog but not see the dog. Once the party defeats the smugglers, the dog
should lovingly jump into the arms of one of the characters with its tail
wagging. Give them the impression that
the dog’s goal was to have them take care of the smuggling operation the entire
time.
Idea # 2
Hook – The party is hunting down a group of evil cultist that has
been terrorizing the area.
Line – The party
is hired by the local authorities to take out the powerful evil cult.
Sinker – The cult
is not actually all that powerful. During
the party’s search portray their actions as bumbling bordering on
incompetent. The party should become
skeptical that the cult is the source of the problems that are happening. The party finds them at the end of a ritual
summoning that is supposed to bring forth a demon o f unimaginable power and an
imp appears and promptly flies off. One
of the councilmen that hired the party is actually an evil cleric that is
trying to get rid of the competition.
His existence should be revealed when a pack of hell hound join the
fight toward the end to make sure that none of the cultist survive. To make matters worse, the imp decides he
likes the party and starts to follow them.
Unfortunately he gets bored a lot and will play pranks on the party members.
Idea #3
Hook – The party
is traveling through the forest to the next town when they hear what sounds
like a large group of people approaching.
Line- The party is
swarmed by an large group of orcs that passes by them at full speed without
even stopping when they see the party.
If any of the characters understand orcish, they hear phrases like “Is
it still following us?” “We’ve got to get out of here!” A minute after the orcs pass, a young boy
emerges from the woods and asks the party if they will be his friends.
Sinker – The boy is
actually a polymorphed dragon that is out to have fun with the locals before killing
them. It tells the party that he got separated
for his parents and believes that they are over that way, pointing in the
direction he is going. If the party
decided to help search of his parents, the “boy” will lead them around the
forest and eventually to his lair before revealing himself as the dragon. If he is attacked before then he will fight
the party, but would prefer to wait because he does not want to have to lug all
of their cool stuff back home by himself.
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