Paka
03-03-2004, 03:10 AM
All of the players are lords, servants and locals for a keep, newly taken from the clutches of an evil. The evil will be determined among the players, as characters are created. It does not need to be defined, could remain a vague rumor.
The keep will be created during character generation, much like an Ars Magica covenant. Its name and history will be determined among the players with the DM's firm hand on the tiller.
The Tome of Rituals
Like Gormenghast, the keep has a Tome of Rituals that must be followed, letting the Castellan know what must be done on a given day. Players may e-mail, write-up, or suggest pages in the Tome of Rituals but the DM knows what is going to be on the page for a given day.
An example Tome entry: Today is when the King's ambassador comes down the southern highway in order to re-affirm the lord of the keep's vows to the crown.
- Make sure the southern highway is cleared of bandits and other threats.
- Prepate an appropriate feast and an apartment for the king's ambassador.
- Examine the royal family lineage in order to make a hypothesis on who the ambassador could be.
The Cauldron
These are index cards with bits of magic, flashes of insight, prophetic ramblings and such printed on them. People in the keep sometimes have touches of the Sight.
An example card: Pick a player character and an NPC they love. Upon seeing their loved one next they will know how they will die in brief flahes of blood and gore. The player who draws this card can tell the player the description of the flash and will confer with the DM about what the flashes actually portend.
This is just a vague campaign idea that I'm batting around, a response to my many campaigns in which I run around all of the world. I'm wondering if there is adventure in being in one place and peeling its secrets like an onion.
Any suggestions or thoughts are appreciated.
I've cross-posted this all over the place but figured I'd get some nice feedback here. Thanks for reading.
The keep will be created during character generation, much like an Ars Magica covenant. Its name and history will be determined among the players with the DM's firm hand on the tiller.
The Tome of Rituals
Like Gormenghast, the keep has a Tome of Rituals that must be followed, letting the Castellan know what must be done on a given day. Players may e-mail, write-up, or suggest pages in the Tome of Rituals but the DM knows what is going to be on the page for a given day.
An example Tome entry: Today is when the King's ambassador comes down the southern highway in order to re-affirm the lord of the keep's vows to the crown.
- Make sure the southern highway is cleared of bandits and other threats.
- Prepate an appropriate feast and an apartment for the king's ambassador.
- Examine the royal family lineage in order to make a hypothesis on who the ambassador could be.
The Cauldron
These are index cards with bits of magic, flashes of insight, prophetic ramblings and such printed on them. People in the keep sometimes have touches of the Sight.
An example card: Pick a player character and an NPC they love. Upon seeing their loved one next they will know how they will die in brief flahes of blood and gore. The player who draws this card can tell the player the description of the flash and will confer with the DM about what the flashes actually portend.
This is just a vague campaign idea that I'm batting around, a response to my many campaigns in which I run around all of the world. I'm wondering if there is adventure in being in one place and peeling its secrets like an onion.
Any suggestions or thoughts are appreciated.
I've cross-posted this all over the place but figured I'd get some nice feedback here. Thanks for reading.