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Old 01-31-2012, 06:01 AM   #1
Jürgen Hubert
 
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Default GURPS Dark Sun Campaign Plotting

This is a general brainstorming thread for my GURPS Dark Sun campaign. I had another thread for this on RPGNet, but I didn't get many replies, so I hope that this one will be more active given past interest in the setting.

The protagonists all started out in a remote village named "Tamuk" to the northeast of Tyr. They are:

-Amryn, a human preserver originally born in Gulg (which means he stands out in a crowd, thanks to his dark skin), though he left it with his mentor when he was a small kid. Psionic Power: A high level of Mind Shield.

- Lagdush: A former gladiator-slave of Tyr who escaped and made it to the village. Fights with kamas and is rather strong. Psionic Power: Probability Alteration.

- Flinx: A half-elf who was abandoned at the village when he was very young. Prefers to fight with swords, and has recently bought a level of Extra Attack. Psionic Power: Probability Alteration. He also has Weirdness Magnet, which I ruled to be an uncontrolled part of his Probability Alteration power.

- A fourth PC, a thri-kreen named Tok'nuk, is taking a break because his player was sent away on training (he is a police officer).


The story so far:

I originally had a bunch of adventures planned out in the area surrounding their home village, but then the PCs captured a group of bandits who had attempted to enslave some people in another village - and thought it would be karmic justice if they sold the bandits in the next larger town, which happened to be Kled. After that, they decided to go to the city-state of Tyr instead of going home. In Tyr, King Kalak is still in power, and the Great Games honoring the completion of the ziggurat are four weeks away.

Once there, the preserver joined the Veiled Alliance and revealed to the other PCs that he is actually a mage (except to the gladiator, who is still in denial). The half-elf (who has Weirdness Magnet, remember) also found a crystal in the street containing a psionic intelligence with no memory of its past but a high sensitivity to psionic phenomena.

Thanks to the crystal, the PCs found a hidden workshop north of Tyr where King Kalak had some slave artisans manufacture some extra obsidian orbs for him. After that, they saved the life of a heir of the Merchant House of Inika and hired on with him as bodyguards.

Then Amryn decided on his own plan on sabotaging the efforts of King Kalak: He wanted to use his mastery of Earth spells to gradually create large hollow areas under the Ziggurat until it collapsed. When he was setting this in motion, he found a hallway leading deeper into the ziggurat. He fetched the others, and with a little help from the Veiled Alliance they entered the building and explored it.

They fought some skull spirits and ash golems, and eventually managed to severely damage and partially shatter a central obsidian column intended to channel life energy into the ritual chamber (though not the ritual chamber itself). They continued to explore the ziggurat, and when they heard Kalak's arrival thanks to a cry of rage they continued to explore the ziggurat instead of using their teleport amulets to get out of there. Kalak then arrived and struck down the mul with his mind. The half-elf then managed to activate the mul's teleport amulet before activating his own. Kalak then concentrated on the Amryn, but his psionic attack failed thanks to the latter's psionic defenses. Amryn managed to hold out a few more rounds until he was roasted by a 7d flame jet, but his amulet activated and brought him to temporary safety. The waiting Veiled Alliance members gave Flinx (the only one to remain conscious) Hawk Flight and told him to get out of there, while they teleported again, fled on foot, and finally healed and interrogated them about what they learned before departing.

Eventually, they all regrouped outside of the city (as the mul and the half-elf are now wanted for questioning, torture, more questioning, more torture, and extreme and prolonged dismemberment...) to plan their next steps.
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Old 02-01-2012, 08:44 AM   #2
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Default Re: GURPS Dark Sun Campaign Plotting

So now I think it would be a good idea to get the Order involved.

For those of you who have read the Dragon Kings supplement, you might remember the Order as a very powerful but also very boring group of psionicists who basically seem to prevent powerful psionicists from doing anything interesting other than developing their powers and gazing their navels.

Needless to say, I junked that from my version of Dark Sun. Basically, I see them as the Illuminati of the setting. Somehow they learned of what the sorcerer-kings are - and they also learned of Rajaat, and what threat this entity represents. They also know that the sorcerer-kings are only able to maintain his prison by sacrificing hundreds of people every year.

So while they hope to eventually find another solution, their main priority is to maintain the status-quo - having lots of city-states with ruthless sorcerer-kings who keep their cities alive and the sacrifices flowing. They also keep the sorcerer-kings distracted so that they won't process further in their dragon metamorphoses. In part this means keeping the sorcerer-kings at each others' throat without letting it degenerate into all-out warfare. Sadly, they have sometimes failed at this, which is why there are quite a few ruins of city-states around.

But now it looks like Kalak wants to ascend to full dragon status, destroying his city-state and stopping the flow of sacrifices. Which means that from the perspective of the Order, he has outlived his usefulness and is becoming a threat. He has to go.

What, you didn't think that a motley gang of "heroes" like Rikus, Sadira, and Agis could overthrow a sorcerer-king like Kalak on their own, did you?
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Old 02-01-2012, 10:01 AM   #3
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Default Re: GURPS Dark Sun Campaign Plotting

I just want to say that I think that it's an awesome idea. I have only briefly looked at the Dark Sun setting, but it looks like you've captured it magnificently.
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Old 02-01-2012, 10:45 AM   #4
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Default Re: GURPS Dark Sun Campaign Plotting

Jurgen, it is absolutely imperative that I play in your DS game. Seriously man. Holy ****. Also I dunno how many points your PCs are worth, but I think Kalak should probably murder the hell out of them for messing with him. Also I dunno if the Order would get involved quite yet. They might have an enforcer watch from a stealthy distance for a bit. I think the Veiled Alliance probably has quite a bit planned for this occasion, so they would get the party to safety (out of the city, maybe a hidden outpost in the dunes) and fill the players in.

Last edited by arconom; 02-01-2012 at 10:54 AM. Reason: Meh
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Old 02-01-2012, 11:14 AM   #5
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Default Re: GURPS Dark Sun Campaign Plotting

Quote:
Originally Posted by arconom View Post
Jurgen, it is absolutely imperative that I play in your DS game. Seriously man. Holy ****.
Well, if you would be willing to relocate to Kassel...

Quote:
Also I dunno how many points your PCs are worth
Probably around 180 CPs or so...

Quote:
, but I think Kalak should probably murder the hell out of them for messing with him.
He certainly plans to try, although right now he is preoccupied with attempting to save his enchantment. He will very likely miss his planned deadline for the ritual (was it ever explained why he had this specific deadline in mind?) and he is seriously ******.

Any idea for some spectacular stunt with which Kalak might attempt to undo the damage?

And what are the possible ways that Kalak might trace them? The trail for Trace Teleport has gone cold now (the Veiled Alliance knew better than to stick around).

Quote:
Also I dunno if the Order would get involved quite yet. They might have an enforcer watch from a stealthy distance for a bit.
Well, they do have that psionic crystal, which was designed by the Order for seeking out and analyzing psionic phenomena - and to keep an eye on them.

Some further background: I allowed the PCs to pick one 25 pt power package from GURPS Psis each (except for the player of the mage, who begged me just to take a high level of Mind Shield instead). The mul and the half-elf each took the package with Adjustment and Second Chance.

In my view of the setting, Probability Alteration is a very rare psionic ability - most psionicists outside the Order don't even know that it exists, so the fact that two PCs have it certainly makes them worthy of attention.

This is even further justified because their home village and several other villages in the area were created by the Order as an attempt to breed better psionicists, and they nudge events there to match the "right" people with the right psionic abilities into having children (of course, after I planned this as a deep background secret, all the players created characters who were born elsewhere and thus have no blood relation to anyone there, except possibly the half-elf. Grrr...).

So now I am thinking that a Psionic Master of Probability Control with a high level of Coincidence (aka the Plot Manipulation power) will approach them and nudge them along. But where should I nudge them to?

Quote:
I think the Veiled Alliance probably has quite a bit planned for this occasion, so they would get the party to safety (out of the city, maybe a hidden outpost in the dunes) and plan their next action.
The Veiled Alliance still has their original plan with Rikus, and in fact considers the PCs somewhat expendable, since they are still basically outsiders and don't know many local Alliance members or their secrets. They will help the PCs if possible - after all, they make a great distraction even apart from the damage they did - but neither will they reveal anything that might hurt the Alliance if it ends up in the wrong hands.

Of course, I have absolutely no problem if the PCs upstage the protagonists of the novels. Still, the question is how to pull that off. The Order certainly has some ideas on how to kill a sorcerer-king, but they have kept their very existence a secret from the sorcerer-kings all those centuries and they don't want to tip their hands either.

So, any suggestions?
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Old 02-01-2012, 01:06 PM   #6
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Default Re: GURPS Dark Sun Campaign Plotting

The Order, pretending to be VS agents, sets up a special crystal-mediated resonance between the probability alteration psis that nulls out their power but contantly accumulates psionic energy, and shows the high mindshield mage how to trigger it (since he can't be psionically interrogated). This activates their crystal toy to do some fancy psionic jiggery-pokery that will severely (if temporarily) weaken even a Dragon King.

What they don't mention is the fancy psionic jiggery-pokery in question is effectovely a probability alteration "bomb" that runs everything in a 100' radius though the psionic equivalent of _Will it Blend_.

The Order plans to wait for the shockwave and swoop in and finish the lightly blended Kalak off.

Presumably, the set up will have some hole in it (perhaps only noticeable because of a combo of wierdness magnet and Mind Shield make it possible) and the PCs figure it out.

from there, they can try to figure out how to channel this thing into a weapon without dying, or alternately just find a way to end it before the system overlaods and goes off on it's own...
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Old 02-01-2012, 01:29 PM   #7
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Default Re: GURPS Dark Sun Campaign Plotting

Oh, and I also need some good ideas for a "hunter" - someone who hunts them on Kalak's orders. Could be a templar, could be a bounty hunter, but they should give off a good "Dark Sun vibe".

I am thinking of some sort of psionic animal that can pick up the "psionic signature" of someone and seek them out - even if they used teleportation to move around (which the PCs do, now).
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Old 02-01-2012, 01:42 PM   #8
Jürgen Hubert
 
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Default Re: GURPS Dark Sun Campaign Plotting

Quote:
Originally Posted by martinl View Post
The Order, pretending to be VS agents, sets up a special crystal-mediated resonance between the probability alteration psis that nulls out their power but contantly accumulates psionic energy, and shows the high mindshield mage how to trigger it (since he can't be psionically interrogated). This activates their crystal toy to do some fancy psionic jiggery-pokery that will severely (if temporarily) weaken even a Dragon King.

What they don't mention is the fancy psionic jiggery-pokery in question is effectovely a probability alteration "bomb" that runs everything in a 100' radius though the psionic equivalent of _Will it Blend_.

The Order plans to wait for the shockwave and swoop in and finish the lightly blended Kalak off.

Presumably, the set up will have some hole in it (perhaps only noticeable because of a combo of wierdness magnet and Mind Shield make it possible) and the PCs figure it out.

from there, they can try to figure out how to channel this thing into a weapon without dying, or alternately just find a way to end it before the system overlaods and goes off on it's own...
That's... not subtle enough for my tastes. The Order values Secrecy above pretty much everyone else. It's one thing if they can subtly guide adventurers to some ancient artifact (and not necessarily a psionic one) that can destroy a sorcerer-king, but it's quite another to unleash a shockwave of psionic weirdness that will make the other sorcerer-kings - or worse, the Dragon - sit up and ask themselves what the hell was going on there.
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Old 02-01-2012, 05:52 PM   #9
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Default Re: GURPS Dark Sun Campaign Plotting

Kalak might send Tithian and a Kaisharga to bait the player characters into a trap. They could do this by posing as the Veiled Alliance, by scrying to learn the party's position and organising a pincer attack with some hired mercs, or by posting a phony bounty to attract the party's attention.

Maybe a mercenary with Static (magic and psi) and a team a skilled archers will hunt the party.

The Veiled Alliance might try to test the group's loyalty by giving them a task or an object that they indicate is very important, but it really doesn't matter at all.

The Order won't get too involved at this stage. At most, they might send someone to watch from a distance. If they want to protect the party, they might create a conflict between gangs/guilds/merchant houses to distract the threats.

Also I'd say Kalak knows where the party is at this point. It is kindof difficult to hide from a god. (I run the SKs as gods)
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Old 02-02-2012, 01:27 AM   #10
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Default Re: GURPS Dark Sun Campaign Plotting

Quote:
Originally Posted by arconom View Post
Kalak might send Tithian and a Kaisharga to bait the player characters into a trap. They could do this by posing as the Veiled Alliance, by scrying to learn the party's position and organising a pincer attack with some hired mercs, or by posting a phony bounty to attract the party's attention.
Tithian probably won't lead this in person, since he is also busy with building the ziggurat and following other Veiled Alliance leads - and besides, it's proper story etiquette to send some lower henchmen first.

Quote:
Also I'd say Kalak knows where the party is at this point. It is kindof difficult to hide from a god. (I run the SKs as gods)
I don't see them as gods - they are very, very powerful mages and psionicists, and have some additional advantages from their dragon metamorphosis, but they are not gods though they often pretend to be. Ordinary mortals should be afraid of them, but they are not all-powerful or all-knowing.
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