I appreciate in advance any hints, criticism or feedback. This is meant to be an adventure in a war setting involving players helping bring aid to a besieged city.
(note: campaign main link here: http://www.thecbg.org/e107_plugins/forum/forum_viewtopic.php?24252
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Background: The City of Fineberg is under siege by a mixed force of human barbarians, mercenaries and humanoids. However it is expected that at some point allies in the form of a group of Cloud Giants will arrive, which is dreaded. A Firbolg giant arrives in the city, using stealth and magic to get in, and offers assistance in exchange for assistance. The enemy giantish alliance have attacked lands the Firbolg's clan lives in and have enslaved most of them, using magical chains to prevent them from shapeshifting. If the citizens of Fineberg help free them, they will come and fight alongside them against the enemy giants when they arrive.
Though among the leaders of the city are powerful former adventurers they dare not leave lest the enemy take advantage of their departure; in a sense it is their presence that prevents an all out attack. The player group are known for their diplomacy with other races, since it was they who secured an alliance with a lizard folk clan earlier. They are the ideal people to send, both clever and tough.
The visiting Firbolg was also shown a foundry where in anticipation of just such an alliance dwarvish and human smiths are busy making giant sized weapons. The envoy is told that each giant will receive such a weapon if they swear a permanent alliance with the Republic.
NPCs of Importance:
Perrin, a Firbolg: Perrin is a somewhat young giant, normally inclined to either avoid humans or trick them out of treasure or intimidate them for fun. However he now has a very serious task at hand. He was returning from hunting when he saw smoke over the area of his clan home and realized after sneaking closer that Fire Giants and other creatures had attacked. Firbolgs are normally rather proud and yet crafty, and it was reluctantly that he came south for help. He did so at the bidding of an older dying Firbolg called Kerwyn whom he respected very much. Perrin may play pranks on the pcs and their group or possibly be dangerously curious when it is unhelpful and will bear some watching. One thing puzzling him: how were his folk surprised and overwhelmed?
General Carmel: The commander of the city forces, she is a shrewd and adept warrior and will request that the players undertake this mission. Because it is a bit beyond the regular call of duty they will be promised rewards in exchange for this. (I'm still debating what they will be given: I was considering perhaps 500gp per player)
Gullveig: the Fire Giants' leader is a shield maiden, who has been given the task of both proving herself and obtaining the necessary resources in timber to help build a fortress for the Fire Giants in the part of the region they have taken over. She is a good tactician and will not be easily fooled. The only flaws in her organization are greater numbers of chaotic creatures such as trolls and ogres than giants and the other Fire Giants' skepticism about her youth and sex. This may cause some of the other giants to make mistakes.
Player Resources:
The player group will consist of: 1 Ranger, 1 Psion, 1 Wizard, and their followers: owl (familiar) pseudo dragon, 1 barbarian, 1 scout, 10 mounted soldiers under a serjeant. The players' personal armorer and servant will stay behind in the city.
They will be given two scrolls that will enable them to do a mass invisibility spell so that they can enter and leave. They will either use the pseudo dragon, the firbolg, or a message spell to communicate when they need to return.
The party will be given food for themselves and the horses.
They are also given a set of orders which instruct members of the army of the Republic or militia to assist them, signed by both General Carmel and the Lord High Wizard.
The Mission
The player group are to go to the former elvish town of Ciuin and help rescue the Firbolgs. They are not to sacrifice themselves in this endeavor but are to make every other effort possible. Once the rescue is carried out those giants able to are to make their way to Fineberg to swear to the treaty.
the Countryside
Siege Works
For about twenty miles around Fineberg the land is devasted. This was the work of General Carmel's own forces, who stripped all farms, burned all buildings and left the area in ashes in anticipation of the arrival of the enemy.
Three great encampments surround the city. While there are accessways through them they are surrounded by trenches and lines of sharpened stakes, with sentries patrolling. A river divides the city from the southern and western encampments.
The players must avoid encountering anyone. There is a 1 in four chance of an encounter per turn. The easiest way to slip out is to go by night but then the risk of goblin or orc sentries increases.
Scenes:
1. The rows of stakes are about twenty feet apart, each stake roughly six feet apart in its row. The stakes are difficult for horses to pass through though it is possible.
2. Encampment: for the most part this is hide or cloth tents, with some huts made out of wattle and mud. Among them are various warriors caring for their gear, eating, making sport in various ways (wrestling, weapons practice, whores, throwing contests or archery contests). There are also builders, mostly goblins, working on siege towers and rams and the like. The sound of grindstones, axes and drums can be heard. Huts and more sturdy structures have been put together to act as temporary armories and storage facilities. Camp followers will move through this area: tinkers, prostitutes, peddlers and the like.
3. Latrine trench. A foul reek.
4. The officers' encampments: these tend to be larger pavilions, and there are usually warriors of one kind or another on guard duty here. The activities tend to be more expensive, such as having shields properly touched up with paint, falconry, games of checkers, and so on, though slightly more pricey forms of the other activities will also exist.
5. Slave encampment. The slaves are here to work on building siege works and doing the lowest menial tasks. Most are human.
Landscape
Beyond the siege works the land all seems to be recently cut down copses of trees, estates and farms reduced to charcoaled lumber and burned brick, a taste of ashes in the very air. Enemy foraging parties of orcs, riders and goblins on wolves move through the area now and then, discouraged but searching for anything overlooked.
Beyond the circle of destruction there are two main ways to get north to the settlement of Ciuin. (I'm assuming the players will not take the main inland trade road, which is held by the enemy currently)
1. The Wild Country. This is a region of forested tall hills to the north and west. It is possibly a good way to avoid enemy contact but will take longer as it has mostly hunters trails and no main roads.
2. The coastal road: this is a raised road that is rather good but is along the Silver River, a great broad river that is navigable and thus vulnerable to attacks by the enemy fleet.
Encounters in the Wild Country
1. Free Rangers. This represents possible help. Free Rangers have a badge that states that they represent the Republic but answer to no direct hierarchy. Their duty is to keep the trails safe in the Wild Country.
2. Isolated settlement. Possible adventure opportunities.
3. Humanoid raiding party. Humanoids have been urged to sweep through this area to prevent the Republic using it as a refuge or means to strike at them and their allies.
4. Monster. Certain strange creatures and beasts live in this area.
5. Hungry predators: wolves and bears in particular are moving into this area from the north, hungry and eager for prey as the giants and humanoids have been stripping the countryside. They will particularly seek out lightly armed human groups if they have livestock.
6. Druid. Druids, mostly in isolation but sometimes gathering may be encountered here. They will help with healing or other low to mid level spells and possibly offer a hermit's shelter for the night, but are otherwise disinclined to leave the service of the local communities.
Encounters along the Coast Road
1. The town of Sterry: this walled river town with its small wood and stone fort has been taken over by reavers. By night it could be snuck around. There are approximately forty raiders who have two roundships. The inhabitants were taken entirely unawares. While they outnumber the party it might be possible to help free the town. The raiders have one priest with them but he is busy making sacrifices to the sea gods or healing wounded. The leader is a bold man but too greedily gloating to be cautious. Sterry can certainly provide food and shelter out of gratitude if saved but has almost no one capable of really helping them free the giants since nearly all their militia was destroyed. In fact they will be worried if the players leave and ask them to send help.
2. The village of Corvalis: this is a fishing village that was subjected to a raid but whose leaders insisted on standing down the little militia they had and offering tribute. They will pretend this did not happen, though a certain wary sullenness can be seen in the village. The players might find themselves betrayed by these folk.
3. Refugees: people from various riverine farms and villages are fleeing humanoid and raider attacks. They make it clear that the enemy are plundering the river country at will. They are bitter towards the characters, especially if they refuse to help escort them to Fineberg. They are very unhappy if they discover Fineberg is now surrounded.
4. Orc raid. Not far from this encounter is a burned and ruined village. Orc raiders are herding goats and captives south to the siege encampments. They are too many to fight, nearly 140 orcs led by Smorog Maulfist, all on foot but well armed with spears, bows and battle axes.
Verity
This is the largest town in northeastern New Edom but is still rather small. When the players were last here they dealt with a necromantic cult worshipping the Hill King, a powerful wight. It now has a pallisade wall and a new town leadership which is a council of the most influential farmers and craftsmen as well as a druid called Jarax. There are approximately 34 members of the town militia led by Captain Braun, wearing leather armor with crossbows and various hand weapons. Approximately 50 other townsfolk can arm themselves with heavy tools and farming implements if need be. They have sent envoys to the local lizardfolk, the gnomes to the northwest and the wood elves, but have found to their dismay that the lizardfolk have sent all the aid they can to Fineberg and in fact have up and moved to a more remote part of the marshes their vulnerable young and eggs. The gnomes and elves can send nothing as their own lands have been invaded by giants.
When the players arrive they discover that all outlying farms have been abandoned and some in fact have obviously been attacked,are either smouldering ruins or otherwise damaged. The town is in an uproar. The players are inititially greeted with relief and cheered as heroes. They will have a bit of a time explaining (if they bother) why they are not here to relieve the town but in fact are on another mission altogether.
Note: it is possible to persuade the town to assist them in some capacity as the players could persuade that they intend to put a stop to the immediate threat of the giants to the north. The townsfolk will at the very least enable them to encounter the wood elvish and gnomish partisans.
Rumors and Info
1. (Rumor) The elvish town of Delaron is cursed, the elves pronounced some awful magic upon the giants when they captured it and now anyone who goes there is slain by animated poisonous plants. (this is untrue: the town in fact simply had a form of pollen that giants are deadly allergic to. It would make a good fall back position as humans and demihumans are immune to it)
2. (Rumor) The giants are coming! They have conquered the wood elves of Carnmag and the gnomes of Cafra already! (this is untrue: the giants have no intention of conquering all of Carnmag, which is mostly a wild forested country, and have been stalled in their campaign in the gnomes' country because of constant partisan style attacks. What is happening is that the more chaotic followers have been raiding into the Republic)
3. Gnome warriors came briefly to Verity to trade for food and told the town leaders that the giants seem to be building some kind of huge building complex to the north, and dragging trees to it using some kind of smaller group of giants wearing chains.
Freeing the Firbolgs
1. As noted above, the firbolgs at times are made to drag heavy logs along a dirt road to the fortress works. This is possibly the worst time to free some of them as the fire giants have become wary of possible attacks by gnomes or wood elves.
2. The gnomes or wood elves can be encountered, the former to the west and the latter to the north. Either group will be eager to strike at the giants but both have been demoralized and disheartened. The players may be able to put fight into them. (I haven't decided how many they are or what they are like--I don't want them to be overwhelmingly helpful but ideally used perhaps to distract the enemy while the players deal with the meat of the adventure)
3. The Fire Giants have two main camps: one is in the ruins of the elvish settlement of Ciuin, which was largely built among magically transformed trees which have since mostly been cut up and made into gigantic shelters and a huge pallisade. The other is about ten miles away and is on a hillside overlooking what were formerly gnomish pasturelands. Now the herds of goats and sheep belong to the giants. The first camp has ten fire giants, four hellhounds and a group of fifteen firbolgs who are kept chained up. Gullveig, who is a fighter/cleric, commands these. At night the firbolgs are all kept in a big hut the size of a feasting hall. Two fire giants with a hellhound are on guard in two shifts by night. There is a crude wall of stone and wooden stakes surrounding the lumber camp. By day the firbolgs are at work moving the logs which the fire giants chop down. Two hellhounds and four fire giants are on guard duty in shifts. Two of the female firbolgs are required to cook and mend per day shift. Gullveig does work one shift but mostly supervises. She will also lead out a patrol at a random time of the day with one hellhound and three other giants. Since roughly a square mile of land has already been cut down by giantish might it is difficult to sneak up, though by night the stumps and brush could be used for cover.
The other group is larger and more powerful, consisting of a Fire Giant Jarl called Egel, his shaman, 20 fire giants and a traitorous firbolg called Onald who was bitterly jealous of another firbolg who won the love of the chieftain's daughter. (this female swore she'd rather haul logs than so much as kiss him--and is now doing so) The fire giants at the hill are building a hill fort and plan to bring noncombatant females and children to it from their own land. A fire giant smith is directing the work of another group of slaves, mostly humans and gnomes from destroyed settlements. There are twenty gnomes and thirty human slaves. Six more hellhounds are used to patrol the hill fort.
This is what I have so far: I'd appreciate some constructive criticism. I haven't for instance decided what the firbolg reaction entirely will be.
I'd say their reaction may depend on how easy you want it to be on your players. If you want things to go well, then the firbolg are just looking for the means to rise up and will help as soon as freed. If you want more difficult, then there is dissension in their ranks; some want freedom, others fear the price may be too high.
Also, I'd make the female firbolg important to the scene. Start by giving her a name ;) If you make her one of the deciding factors, it makes things more interesting.
Thanks Phoenix. Good sound advice. Does it seem playable and interesting?
Absolutely. A rescue, or really anything that mixes up the typical "this random monster attacks you or must be slain" is always good for games. Especially if it is set up in a way to that
1) forces the players to think
2) allows skill-based characters to actually use those skills once in a while. We can assume fighters will get to fight most of the time, and casters rarely need help shining. But the rogue/bard with lots of skills may feel deprived if all he gets to do is fight.
To that end, perhaps set up the camp in such a way that they must (I should say should, not must, since it's their choice) sneak in, and maybe negotiate with the prisoners to convince them to help. Give them enough foes no assault could work without aid from prisoners, so they actually need a plan.
Another bit of advice would be to tie it to the next adventure you plan. While there, they have the chance to uncover the secret plans of the giants, or find a clue, or witness something important, or whatever hook you can think up.
Just read it all, and it looks good. Nothing much to say, other than you might consider having the PC's face resistance from refugees on the road or in Verity for some nice moral dilemma's.
One thing that had occured to me after thinking about 20's post was the idea of a group of refugees on the road begging or even demanding escort to someplace safe. After watching an episode of Rome I thought perhaps these might even include members of the Great Council (politicians but not necessarily of any class useful to the group) or rich people of some description who demand escort, at once!
The other angle would be to have nobles that keep secret who they are. Perhaps they are obnoxious or not, and whether the PCs treat them well not knowing who they are might have long term repercussions for them. If they save them and treat them well, those nobles could be powerful allies.
If they treat them poorly, they could be antagonists. If they fail to save the noble-in-disguise, followers may come after them.