Fantasy Friday: A Lordly Petition (A One Shot Adventure)...

Good Afternoon, All:

It's time for another installment of Fantasy Fridays. Today, I thought I'd write up a brief One Shot using a pretty major variation of the my One Page Plot format. I'm in the process of writing up some adventures to put in my GM Notebook, and figured that sharing one of them might be helpful, particularly in terms of getting feedback and additional suggestions. As inspiration, I am using Polti's 36 Dramatic Situations to inspire this particular round of adventure creation. The theme for this One Shot is Supplication.

Plot Name: A Lordly Petition

Synopsis: The Lord-Mayor of a frontier town must send the PCS to present a request for assistance before his Liege to protect his lands from a Raiding Warlord.

NPC Goals: The four primary NPCs involved in this adventure follow.

• Lord-Mayor: A retired guardsman, the Lord-Mayor is a wiry, loyal warrior. Given the ferocity of the recent attacks by the Raiding Warlord, the Lord-Mayor seeks to hold out long enough for the Liege's reinforcements to arrive. If he cannot hold out, then he will stay behind to hold the raiders off while guards escort his wife and daughter to safety.
• Liege: A gluttonous man, the Liege is a rotund yet competent administrator of the lands under his control. The Liege desires to conserve as much of his resources as possible, so that there's more money in his coffers for fine wine and epicurean delicacies.
• Raiding Warlord: A talented tactician turned rogue, the Raiding Warlord is a stern, cruel warlord. Leading his band of mercenaries, the Raiding Warlord has been secretly hired by the Neighboring Lord to raid the lands of the Lord-Mayor and create havoc. Unbeknownst to the Neighboring Lord, the Raiding Warlord also seeks a magical relic that is rumored to be in the possession of the Lord-Mayor.
• Neighboring Lord: An ambitious, scarred fencer, the Neighboring Lord inherited his title from his father. The Neighboring Lord desires the Lord-Mayor's daughter, and hired the Raiding Warlord in the hopes that the raids will force the Lord-Mayor to send his daughter to him for protection. In addition, the Neighboring Lord is willing to hire an assassin to kill the Lord-Mayor and his wife using the Raiding Warlord as the scapegoat for the murders, so that he can petition the Liege for the Lord-Mayor's daughter's hand in marriage. If push comes to shove, he'll even volunteer his own guards as reinforcements to put himself in the position to make that happen.

Locales: The four primary locations that may potentially be involved in this adventure follow.

• Frontier Town: This small walled village holds the manor of the Lord-Mayor, and has been recently filling up with refugees from the outlying farms impacted by the Raiding Warlord.
• Liege's Court: The high court of the region, this is the place where petitions are made and justice is meted out.
• Boar Woods: This small forest is owned by the Liege, and serves as his private hunting reserve. A minor trade route leads through the woods from the Lord-Mayor's lands to the Liege's castle; and might make a good place for ambushes from either the Raiding Warlord or the Neighboring Lord.
• Raider's Camp: The base camp for the raiders, this hidden location on the frontier holds most of the treasures captured by the Raiding Warlord, as well as the bulk of his mercenary forces when they are not out raiding.

Plot Hooks: The player-characters may become actively engaged in this scenario through the plot hooks that follow.

• Hired To Deliver The Petition: The party might be hired by the Lord-Mayor (or they may volunteer after a raid) to deliver the petition and secure reinforcements against the forces of the Raiding Warlord.
• Hired To Recover The Magical Relic: The Raiding Warlord may hire the party to infiltrate the Lord-Mayor's township and recover the magical relic believed to be in the Lord-Mayor's possession.
• Hired To Stop The Petitioners: The Neighboring Lord or the Raiding Warlord may hire the party to stop the petitioners from delivering the petition to the Liege.
• Hired To Kill The Lord-Mayor: The Neighboring Lord may hire the party to enter into the Lord-Mayor's good graces and then assassinate the Lord-Mayor and his wife. They must make it look like the Raiding Warlord is behind the assassination.

Possible Challenges: Some possible non-combat challenges that empower the party to attempt either a roleplaying or skills-based resolution instead of a combat resolution can be found below.

• Petitioning the Liege: The party may have to present the petition to the Liege in court, and argue on behalf of the Lord-Mayor to receive reinforcements. Failure: No reinforcements. Partial Success: Reinforcements offered by the Neighboring Lord. Success: Reinforcements from both the Liege and the Neighboring Lord.
• Searching the Lord-Mayor's Manor: The party may have to stealth into the Lord-Mayor's manor in search of the magical relic sought by the Raiding Warlord. Failure: The Lord-Mayor attempts to arrest and imprison the party as thieves. Partial Success: The party does not find any relic, but does have a chance to obtain some treasure; the Lord-Mayor puts a bounty on the head of whoever stole from him. Success: The party discover a treasure map that points to where the relic is buried.
• Learning the Petitioners' Plans: The party may have to somehow figure out the petitioners' plans if they are going to intercept the Lord-Mayor's petition. Failure: Must follow the petitioners and hope they catch up; alternately, may be hired to assassinate the Lord-Mayor and his wife instead. Partial Success: Learn of the petitioners' plans in time to arrange an ambush, but the petitioners become aware someone is following them and are more wary. Success: Learn of the petitioners' plans in time to arrange an ambush, and the petitioners do not suspect a thing.
• Finding the Raider's Camp: The party may attempt to track down the Raider's Camp through a combination of tracking and interviewing survivors. Failure: Find an abandoned camp that was used by the raiders until a week or two ago. Partial Success: Find the Raider's Camp, but are detected in the process. Success: Find the Raider's Camp without being detected.

Possible Confrontations: This scenario may include combat encounters that are most easily resolved through warskill and prowess, such as those that follow.

• Ambushed By Raiders: En route to the Liege's castle, the party may have to fend off an ambush by raiders. Alternately, the party may be the ambushers that are attacking the petitioners. Failure: Those not slain are captured and interrogated for information. Partial Success: At least some members of the party survive to continue the mission. Success: As Partial Success, plus receive a clue that the Neighboring Lord and the Raiding Warlord are in league with one another. (In the alternate scenario, the party gets what they came for, in addition to surviving.)
• Obtaining the Buried Treasure: In following the map, the party discovers that the relic has been buried in a cave that has since become an animal lair. Failure: At least one member of the party gets eaten, and no one can access the buried treasure. Partial Success: The party slay the beast(s), but cannot locate the buried treasure. Success: As Partial Success, except they also recover the buried treasure.
• Attacked By Assassins: The party may  have to deal with assassins sent by either the Neighboring Lord or the Raiding Warlord, depending on their past actions and successes/failures. Failure: At least one member of the party is incapacitated or slain, and the assassins accomplish their goal. Partial Success: The party fights off the assassins, who flee to report back to their employer. Success: As Partial Success, except no assassin survives.
• Attacking the Raider's Camp: The party may attempt to attack the raiders. Failure: At least one member of the party is incapacitated or slain, and the party is unable to stop the raiders. Partial Success: The party slays enough of the raiders to break their morale, who flee the camp to report back to the Raiding Warlord. Success: As Partial Success, except no raider survives to report to the Raiding Warlord.

Possible Complications: This scenario may include encounters that embody a plot complication that must be overcome, such as the ones that follow.

• Boar Woods Bridge Is Out: In an effort to hinder the movement of the party, an enemy has burned the Boar Woods Bridge, leaving the party to figure another way across the river.
• Angry Refugees: A small camp of refugees left homeless by the Raiding Warlord and kicked out of the Lord-Mayor's village for disruptive behavior attempt to take out their anger on the party.
• The Lord-Mayor's Daughter: Impressed by the stories of her father's adventures, the Lord-Mayor's Daughter is looking for a dashing adventurer to develop a crush on. She will sneak into his room when she can, or follow him when he leaves, only to get into trouble and need to be rescued. This won't settle well with the Lord-Mayor.

Possible Climaxes: The final encounter that should represent the biggest and most dangerous encounter of the adventure. This section should also include some notes on possible consequences of success and failure, and a sentence on how to tell when the adventure is over, whichever path the players decide to take.

• The Big Battle: The forces of the Raiding Warlord and the Lord-Mayor meet in a final, climactic battle. During the battle, efforts are made to assassinate the Lord-Mayor and his wife.
• Attack on the Lord-Mayor: The party is involved in either defending the Lord-Mayor and his family, or trying to kill them, depending on who hired them. This should be a big fight in the Lord-Mayor's manor, possibly involving more than two factions in the fight (Lord-Mayor, Raiding Warlord, Neighboring Lord).

The adventure is over when any of the following conditions are met:

• The Raiding Warlord is defeated (or pretends to be defeated after acquiring the relic.)
• The Lord-Mayor is slain and his daughter delivered to the Neighboring Lord.
• The party demonstrates that the Neighboring Lord has hired the Raiding Warlord to attack the Lord-Mayor, and the results of that action has been resolved.
• The party delivers the petition, then elects not to return with them to defend the village.
• The party obtains the magical relic, then elects not to take it to the Raiding Warlord and flees.

Rewards: In addition to whatever payment is negotiated for the party's service, the equipment carried by their enemies adds to their reward. If they track down the Raider's Camp, then the raiders' treasure becomes part of their reward. If the party decides to track down the relic and keep it for themselves, that also becomes a part of their reward.

Obviously, this approach is much more open than normal, with a very fluid suggested structure that does not dictate the actual flow of events. After reading the above, do you have any suggestions on improving the core scenario? What do you think of the organization of data?

Thanks In Advance,
Flynn

One Page Plot: The Icon of Golden Reverie...

Good Morning, All:

Here's another One Page Plot, this one quite linear in implementation. Sadly, given the random plot seed I started with, there wasn't much room for a more open plot structure. Still, it should make for a few entertaining evenings, one would think.

Title: The Icon of Golden Reverie

Synopsis: The party must retrieve a lost work of art from a remote location, in competition with a religious zealot.

Adversaries: Shimmering Mind of the Piercing Scepter is a zealous servant of a Midnight Lord, an undead necromancer with dreams of animating a dead god and imbuing itself with its divine spark. A talented spellsword, Shimmering Mind went insane long ago by extensive exposure to the corrupting taint of a dead god's blood, and is devoted to gathering the power of the dead god so that the Midnight Lord may be reborn as the heir to the god's divine power. Shimmering Mind's immediate goal is the recovery of the Icon of Golden Reverie, which is said to be forged from godflesh given freely before the death of the fallen goddess. His ultimate goal, however, is to see the dead god rise once again (whether in the form of the Midnight Lord or otherwise), and become of the greatest of its worshipers. Shimmering Mind prefers the devastation of fire-based magic over that of others, and has a magic sword that grants him protection from fire-based attacks.

Other NPCs: Scholar-Magus Oleandros is a sage who believes he has discovered the location of the Shrine of Inscrutable Mists. Given that the shrine is located in an isolated region atop a lofty mountain peak, Magus Oleandros seeks the service of professional explorers to retrieve the Icon of Golden Reverie, which is said to lie within the shrine.

Locales: The Shrine of Inscrutable Mists is located high atop Chimera's Peak. Given the region's significance to the fallen goddess known as the Lady of Woes, the slopes team with aberrant lifeforms twisted by the presence of the goddess's ichor. The Shrine itself is protected by a Sovereign Orb, which is perhaps one of the goddess's own eyes.

Plot Hooks: The party may become involved in this plot through a number of means:

* The party may be hired by the Scholar-Magus Oleandros to retrieve the Icon of Golden Reverie from the Shrine of Inscrutable Mists.

* The party may discover a small group of burnt and charred corpses. Searching the bodies uncovers a letter from Oleandros explaining the quest to the adventurers that had since become the victims of Shimmering Mind, and providing a map to the Shrine and description of the Icon.

* The party could uncover references to the Shrine and Icon in an ancient tome found in a reference library affiliated with a Midnight Lord or located within the Madlands.

Basic Outline: This adventure is fairly linear, as far as adventures go. Once the party discovers the existence of the Icon and the location of the Shrine, this adventure only becomes active once they start off into the wilderness in search of Chimera's Peak.

In addition to the usual wilderness encounters, the party will discover signs that another adventurer is traveling in the same direction, and has control over powerful fire-based magic.

At the base of the mountain, the party will need to deal with, or bypass, a tribe of Chimera-herding savages that stalk the area. These savages view the mountain as sacred territory, and do their best to prevent others from trespassing.

In addition to chimeras, numerous aberrations and other divinely warped creatures inhabit the slopes of Chimera's Peak, causing problems for those that make their way up the mountain side.

The peak is shrouded in clouds and mist, and the shrine is difficult to find. When the party arrives, Shimmering Mind is there in meditation before the Shrine. He will not enter until he has recited a lengthy mantra that requires the better part of a day in meditation. The party may enter with him, or travel in alone. Although a zealous dedicant, Shimmering Mind does not appear more unstable than any other worshiper of a fallen god under most circumstances.

The shrine itself is a small complex of four or five rooms, the innermost of which contains a Sovereign Orb, which Shimmering Mind will regard as the eye of the fallen goddess. He will attempt to gain the Icon through persuasion, and only resort to subdual strikes against the Orb if persuasion fails and combat ensues. If the party prematurely initiates combat in the presence of Shimmering Mind, he will defend the Orb first, then resume his efforts to persuade it to relinquish the Icon.

The return trip from the Shrine to civilization offers little new that wasn't encountered previously on the trip to the Shrine.

Complications: The party may encounter a number of complications over the course of this adventure:

* Shimmering Mind is a warped and twisted soul whose fanaticism may not be readily apparent, but may cause complications as events unfold.

* The Chimera Herders are vigilant against trespassers onto the sacred ground of Chimera's Peak.

* The Sovereign Orb is the final guardian of the Icon of Golden Reverie, and does not respond well when attacked.

Rewards: The Icon of Golden Reverie is made from the flesh of a fallen goddess, gilded by gold leaf. It bears an unusual dweomer that grants its bearer mystical insight into the dreams and desires of others, and even a limited ability to read thoughts. With proper control, the Icon can even cause confusion.

Enjoy,
Flynn

One Page Plot: Challenge of the Exiled Lord...

Good Morning:

I've decided that I need to push myself a little creatively, so I've decided to try writing up a One Page Plot in an hour or less, from conception to completion. Below is the result of my Self-Challenge a few hours later, amidst a number of interruptions, based on the results of a set of random chart to determine the basic plot synopsis.

Plot Name: Challenge of the Exiled Lord

Synopsis: The party must protect an one-legged, greedy trader from the actions of a branded, slovenly noble, who is motivated by love.

Adversaries: Exiled from his homeland through the machinations of a romantic rival, Lord Calic bears a prominent brand displaying his status to the world. Broken by the loss of his land and the love of Lady Sandremona, Lord Calic has ceased to care for his general appearance, and wanders listlessly about in pursuit of information that would prove his innocence in the crimes of which he has been accused. Recently, the exiled lord has learned that the one-legged merchant Cheremanthos the Lame was the man who coordinated the actions that framed him. Lord Calic's immediate goal is to capture Chermanthos and interrogate him for information; the lord's ultimate goal is to prove his innocence and reunite with the woman he loves, Lady
Sandremona.

Other NPCs: Cheremanthos the Lame is not a nice man. He's a greedy merchant with numerous ties to the local Thieves' Guild. The one-legged man was hired by Calic's romantic rival, Lord Zerin, to frame Lord Calic for treasonous acts against their mutual liege, whose daughter both men desired. Cheremanthos brokered the contract, and has since used the information as blackmail against Lord Zerin to place himself in a prominent position among the local merchants.

Lord Zerin is an ambitious noble of the courts seeking the hand of Lady Sandremona, so that he may become heir to his liege's lands "should something untoward happen to the old man." In order to deal with a romantic rival, he hired the rogue Cheremanthos to broker arrangements to frame Lord Calic for treason. In the years that have passed since, Lord Zerin has come to regret working with Cheremanthos, but is mostly focused on his upcoming nuptials to Lady Sandremona, which will secure his place as the heir to his liege. He has no love for his bride, nor she for him.

Lady Sandremona truly loves Lord Calic, but is ashamed of the treasonous acts attributed to the lord, believing them to be true. A secret missive from Lord Calic recently informed her of his plans to kidnap the one-legged merchant Cheremanthos, prove his innocence and interrupt her wedding to Lord Zerin in order to properly claim her hand. Afraid that Lord Calic will be executed if discovered within the liege's lands, Lady Sandremona secretly seeks champions who will protect Cheremanthos and, should they discover Lord Calic, escort him outside the region for his own safety.

Locales: Scenes for this plot likely involve the crowded streets of the city, as well as the ballroom of the sovereign's palace, where the wedding between Lord Zerin and Lady Sandremona will take place.

Plot Hooks: The PCs could become engaged in the plot in a number of ways:

* Lady Sandremona may hire them to protect Cheremanthos the Lame, in hopes of having them locate and escort Lord Calic safely from her father's lands.
* The party may witness an unkempt man, branded with the mark of exile, attack a peg-legged merchant, who calls out for help from any of the passers-by.
* Lord Zerin, tired of living under the thumb of Cheremanthos the Lame and fearful that the merchant may attempt to interfere with his wedding, hires the party to "deal with the merchant," only to have them arrive at the same time as Lord Calic.

Basic Outline: Some preliminary scenes may involve the party being hired to protect or "take care of" Cheremanthos the Lame. The plot starts when the party meets Cheremanthos, and witnesses Lord Calic's attempt to kidnap the merchant. In the first true scene of the plot, Lord Calic accosts the merchant Cheremanthos the Lame on a side street. The party has the chance to intervene. If the party succeeds in subduing Lord Calic, he will tell his side of the story. If Lord Calic escapes with Cheremanthos, then the party will need to investigate further. If Lord Calic escapes without Cheremanthos, the party will hear Cheremanthos's story about the treasonous acts of Lord Calic, and told of a reward for him, dead or alive.

The plot can develop in a number of ways, depending on which way events go. With or without the PCs' help, Lord Calic will continue to attempt to capture Cheremanthos. On the day of the wedding, he will attempt to interrupt the ceremony and challenge Lord Zerin to a duel. The PCs can either aid him or hinder him in his efforts.

If the PCs capture Lord Calic, they can either escort him from the region or keep him holed up somewhere until after the wedding. He will, of course, try to escape and gather information so he can interrupt the wedding ceremony and try to win the hand of Lady Sandremona. If the PCs side with him upon hearing his side of the story, they can become his accomplices.

If the PCs save Cheremanthos but do not capture Lord Calic, the lame merchant will hire the party to track down the exiled lord and present him to Lord Zerin so that Lord Calic may be killed for returning from exile.

If the PCs fail to save Cheremanthos, they will find the local Thieves' Guild very helpful in trying to track down the merchant, as he has become a valuable ally to the current Guildmaster. They will likely also discover that Cheremanthos has some form of control over the liege's future son-in-law, Lord Zerin.

In all cases, this plot ends after the wedding ceremony is concluded, whether Lord Calic was successful or not in interrupting it.

Complications: Depending on where the party places their allegiance, there are a number of complications that could arise.

* Thieves' Guild: The local Thieves' Guild has a vested interest in seeing Lord Zerin marry Lady Sandremona, and protecting Cheremanthos, due to his influence over Lord Zerin.
* Lord Zerin: As the future son-in-law of the liege, Lord Zerin has a lot of political clout. He wants to see Cheremanthos dealt with, if it can be done safely, and wants no interruptions of the wedding ceremony.
* Lord Calic: Fanatically driven by his devotion to Lady Sandremona, he will stop at nothing to prevent her from becoming Lord Zerin's wife. Unless he is on a full tilt course in pursuit of that goal, he will work against whatever may be hindering him.

Rewards: Depending on who they are working for and who they appease, the party may find themselves earning any of a variety of rewards. If they aid the victor of this bizarre contest for Lady Sandremona's hand, they will likely earn the grudging approval of the liege, as well as the victor. If the party is known to have aided Cheremanthos's goals at his behest or in his name, they will earn the favor of the local Thieves' Guild as well. Lady Sandremona and Lord Calic will be forever in the party's debt should they prove Calic's innocence, allowing him to regain his lost lands, his family's wealth, and the hand of his lady love.

If, however, the party decides to back a losing party to these unusual circumstances, likely they will find themselves without pay and with a sudden need to leave town quickly and not return. Should they hinder the progress of the local Thieves' Guild, they may gain the Thieves' Guild as an enemy for any future efforts attempted within the city.

Please let me know your thoughts on the above. What did you like from the above example? What did you not like? How can I make this better?

With Regards,
Flynn

GM Mentoring: The One Page Plot...

Good Evening, All:

Today saw two great posts on different blogs: Gnome Stew announcing pre-orders for Eureka, which in turn influenced Campaign Mastery's plot stat block format. While Campaign Mastery's approach is a bit over the top for me, but it did inspire some thought on the subject for me.

However you desire to capture the basics of your plots or adventures, the more structured your approach or format, the easier it will be to locate information when you need it. Some people write modules, while others find the One Page Dungeon approach to be perfect for their needs. While I am learning the joys of the One Page Dungeon, I also run adventures that are more 2nd Edition in style, in which the events of the scenario are not location-based, but rather forged by the motivations of the parties involved in their circumstances. Seeing Eureka's approach to capturing the basics of a plot in a concise manner, I'm sure that it's possible to create One Page Plots in a consistent manner. Taking the ideas from Eureka (yes, I was was the first one worldwide to pre-order the book) and the Campaign Mastery plot stat block, here's my thoughts on a simple format that might make for a One Page Plot. What do you think?

One Page Plot Format - First Draft

Plot name: Every plot needs a cool name, and here's where that name goes.

Synopsis: We need to include a one to two sentence synopsis of the plot to capture the overall goal of the plot.

Adversaries: This section provides some basic details on the adversary or adversaries for this adventure, including the name of the adversary, a brief description of them, a primary goal and hopefully a secondary goal.

Other NPCs: This section should provide some very basic details on other NPCs of note in the plot.

Locales: This section contains some details on locales that are important to the plot, such as the site of the final conflict, if it's essential to the plot. This won't be a dungeon, as we'd capture that info on a One Page Dungeon instead of here on a One Page Plot.

Plot Hooks: At least three ways the PCs could get attracted to this plot and then actively engaged with it.

Basic Outline: In this section, you should lay out the basics that provide the original flow of the plot itself. This could be made in a three act structure, or a five room dungeon format. I will likely follow my personal One Shot approach in outlining this section. This section should also include some notes on possible consequences of success and failure, and a sentence on how to tell when the adventure is over, whichever path the players decide to take.

Complications: Notes on plot complications, even if mentioned in the basic outline, should be detailed here, so you can make sure to include them as you go through.

Rewards: This section should detail the rewards that are central to this particular plot. These may be material goods, magical items, lost lore, ancient rituals, the undying love of a beautiful woman, the beautiful love of an undying woman, or what-have-you.

I'm definitely looking forward to your input. Did I forget something? Should I remove something from the above? Will it work for a One Page write-up?

With Regards,
Flynn