Helping Jake Out

[Jake Norwood]

Okay...fact is that this post is mostly fueled by a desire to post more on this board. That being said, it should be fun anyway. You guys have good ideas, and so I'm going to harvest them.

The first session of a new campaign with a new group begins tomorrow. The players and characters:

Ariel. Professional bellydancer in the traditional style. Character: Fahalan outcast acting as a sort-of guide/(wo)man-who-gets-things-done in the capital city of Ixliaph. She left Fahal many years ago as an exile, and has a deep-stemmed hatred of the clan head that kicked her out. Like most Fahalanim, she doesn't know for sure who her father is, but he definitely wasn't a believer, and probably came from another land entirely. She's faithful, but has a hard time with the Fahalan maxim "Cities breed corruption." She loves her people.

Joe. Professional musician. Character: A street urchin whith a gambling addiction and an untrained Gift for magic. He's an Ixliaph native. I forgot his SAs. Damn.

Earta. Professional student. Character: An old pirate who's since retired from the sea. He (the player is a girl, character a boy...) might be the father of Ariel's character. This will come out in play. Destiny: to become the prince of Ixliaph's favorite govenor and ruler of the capital city.

I'm basing things off of the Ixliaph adventure hook in the core book. In short there's a prophet that denounces the teachings of the ruling class and theocracy (think really conservative Islam, I guess). The ruling class is having a hard time dealing with it, and has decided to blame the local Fahalanim immigrant population and their prophetic tendencies for harboring this rival to their power, etc.

I've got some ideas of my own on where to go with this, but I want to hear anything and everything you guys have to say. Suprise me.

Jake

[Valamir]

Somewhere along the line when the schism is about to rip things wide open, throw in a crusader army and see if the players can tie the disparate factions together enough to keep the city from being plundered.

(As a reserve idea if things start to slow down and flounder)

[Ben Lehman]

I assume that the street urchin, like all good gamblers, is deeply enmeshed in the local crime syndicate.  As well as probably the "guide."

The criminals, in turn, is attempting to popularize and spread the prophet's religion in order to destabilize the government, such to grant themselves more power and possibly even seize direct control through a popular revolution.  These are "libertines" in the old, bad sense -- they have drug dens and gambling and prostitution and so on.

The criminal syndies, leveraging the urchin's debt, get him to help them work schemes surrounding duping the poor prophet, who has no idea how bad his "friends" really are.  The prophet, in turn, really likes the kid, and tells him that he has a great divine spark.

This puts great strain on the kid -- hopefully set up the prophet as a father figure but also a chance to escape his old life.  As the story goes on, gradually stretch his loyalties until they break, hitting him with glowing moments of spirital signifigance, on the one hand, and Guido and the boys on the other.  And, of course, does he dare tell the prophet about his magical powers?  Is that what he means when he says "divine spark" or will he condemn him as a demon child?

yrs--
--Ben

[Snikwas]

You could go the whole soap opera thing. Evidence suggests that the old pirate is the Fahalan outcast's father, but it is in fact the prophet's child. However, he cannot acknowledge his child without compromising his religious position. The street urchin is the illegitimate child of a prominent member of Ixliaph ruling class. His Gift is inherited from his father's line that skips generations. He resentment of his father forces him to side with Fahalanim immigrants. His father has a great secret that his father is a sorcerer, a dotering elder who is given to forgetful uses of magic. The Fahalan outcast befriended and aided the elderly sorcerer when he was lost after miscasting a spell to tie his shoelaces. However, she is unaware that the old man is related to a powerful member of the ruling class. He is aware of her and powerfully drawn to her. So on and so on.

More seriously, you could easily place the characters between the extreme elements of both sides of the conflict. They would have to choose between extremism and moderation. This difficult situation should create a multitude of conflicting SA's. Create a large number of relationships with residents of the city on both sides of the divide. Some examples might be a powerful, but moderate sympathiser of the prophet who could gain power in the city through a peaceful resolution. On the other hand a extreme member of the ruling class might use the conflict cement his power in the city. Either could be a patron to help the old pirate achieve his destiny. Choices, choice...

[Mulciber]

Vis a vis the character Ariel is playing: I really like the ambiquity of "loves her people." Give her several chances to define that as broadly as she wishes (the characters she loves and interacts with are "her people" too, right?  What about people in the city that look to her for guidance, or just need a hand up?), and if she entertains the equivocation, bang: a Fahalan (known-but-despised [clan member] or unknown) is about to kill someone Ariel has identified as one of the character's people but who isn't Fahalan.  Or just riff more directly off of the fact that she loves her people, the Fahalan, but some of those people cast her out.  In particular, I like that the urchin played by Joe becomes one of her people, and that he is threatened or something by others that she considers her people.  I'd definitely give her priviliged access to the prophet in some fashion, empowering her by right of access.

As regards Joe's character: I like Mr. Lehman's post.  Another tangent is that his Giftedness makes him interesting to X and Y groups, who engage in a tug-of-war for first his affections and then if it seems like he's made a choice his person.

With respect to Earta's pirate: does he know his destiny (which is answered more by how long y'all are thinking about playing than anything else)?  If he doesn't, he and Ariel's character the guide meet because he's continually getting cryptic hints from unsavory characters and he wants to figure out what the deal is (assuming that you 1. allow some in the world to know others' destinies and 2. make finding the pirate's out a real pain in the neck [i.e., extended conflict]).  If he does, bring in his old pirate buddies to screw his attempts to ingratiate himself with the governor, or in the pay of the person whose shoes he is destined to fill.  In particular here I like the idea that the pirate wants to talk to the prophet to get some insight on why ninjas are continually hopping out of the closet (or whatever, see cryptic hints), but is rebuffed by the prophet's hangers-on until he hooks up with the guide (who has an in to the prophet).  I'd give the pirate some kind of access to the Man: he saves someone important's life, honor, valuable thingy, and that someone now wishes to (as quickly as possible) satisfy the debt.  

I'd like to please hear feedback as to what you've decided and eventual Actual Play; I realize I post this probably well after you've figured things out.

Best,
Will

[Spartan]

Joe. Professional musician.

Cool.  It's been scientifically proven that having professional musicians in a gaming group increases the overall quality of the gaming. ;)

But I may be biased.  Just a little.  Or a lot.  :D

-Mark

[Jake Norwood]

Thanks a lot, guys. That was exactly what I needed. I've got some really good stuff to work with. I'll keep you posted.

Jake

[Jake Norwood]

Hey guys.

We finished the second session of this campaign recently. It went much better than the first, and we had much more SA use and the groove was getting on...the players are starting to see the control they have.

The story thus far, condensed--

The guide is commissioned to set up a meeting place for a few thousand people for this prophet figure. She immedieately doesn't like him, but nothing of SA quality. The rally then goes down, and is turned into a riot as the prophet violates one of Ixliaph's oldest religious laws (not bearing any skin but around the eyes) by bearing it all in public. The thug-like guards are called in, and a lot of people are killed. Our heroes flee (after one of them murders what appears to be a buglar and the guide's aide attempts to poison her. The aide flees into the sewers.

The next day the Urchin meets a group of 8 grey-skinned men trying to fit in, but doing poorly. He gambles with them and looses. Since he's broke, he offers to find them room and board immediately (since they have none). He takes them to the Guide. The 8 men (Fahalanim, clearly) remove their veils when in the presence of the Guide (also Fahalan). The leader of this little troupe is none other than Ba'anar, the Guide's hated Clan chief. She goes for a knife and kills him in a very intense, sudden attack (at the same time the Urchin, not sure what's going on, pins the Cheif's arm from behind, preventing any counter-attack). She and the Urchin then hot-foot it out of there before the other 7 can catch up.

This was an especially powerful scene, due to its sudden ferocity and the Guide's players saying "I don't want to die!" as her character said "You're going to die" and killed the man out of the blue. Intense.

A chase ensues. The Pirate comes accross all this and follows, trailing the Fahalanim long after the Guide has lost them. The Pirate follows them to the sewers under one of the homes of a high priest, where they have a secret meeting and discuss the intentionally set riots at the last and yet-to-come rally of the prophet. The Fahalanim are then commissioned to kill the Prince in the chaos.

The whole lot of them then get together and go to an illegal drink-and-gambling den, where they meet up with one of the Pirate's tax-collector friends to gamble. The Guide milks the underworld for info as well, including some pretty creepy discussions with the more powerful and ruthless underworld types.

That evening the PCs learn that the prophet is going through someone else to set up his next meeting, scheduled for the next morning. Legwork shows that none of the usual guides, crimelords, or suspects is involved. In addition, there are canvasers out inviting people to come. They apprehend a canvaser and learn that the tax collectors are paying for the rally and its advirtising. Meanwhile the Pirate and the Urchin gamble the tax collector friend into poverty, then into too much drinking, then the rob him blind, all after finding out about his boss and his boss's lofty aspirations to own an island.

Alltogether it would appear that the priests and tax collectors are trying to kill the prince and finish taking over the country. They're also trying to clear out the more dangerous parts of town where the tax collectors can't get to because it isn't safe, meaning that the ganglords are being threatened. Lastly, there's talk of an economic smokescreen war with Fahal, which is apparently motivating the resident Fahalanim to cooperate with the conspirators. Or at least that's my theory on what's going on.

I plan on really milking all of the Urchin's greedy SAs now (though he allready changed one to a loyalty for the Pirate...looks like we have our father figure). I'd also like to put the Guide into a "leader of the people" roll, but at the same time jack around with the fact that she murdered the leader of the people at the time. The theme? So far it's religion and government motivated by economics and greed (Ixliaph) vs. the more "pure" approach of the Fahalan.  

I still want to work more of the suggestions you guys gave me into the mix. I allready had the prophet propose that the Guide was the Pirate's daughter (not a pirate...a sailor...oh well), but the Guide didn't buy it. Making the prophet into dad would rock. How to get that revelation out?

Comments, ideas, and conspiracy theories strongly appreciated.

Jake

[Snikwas]

Sounds like crazy fun so far.

Making the prophet into dad would rock. How to get that revelation out?

The first question! Does anybody know this information explicitly or is it only possible to be determined through circumstantial evidence (e.g. The Prophet was knew the Guide's mother and was in the right place at the right time)? Either way, be very clear on who knows what, why and what might motivate them to reveal it.

I can think of several basic ways of getting it into the story.

1. The guide is told explicitly.

It could be by someone trying to cause her pain, or hurt the Prophet's image or someone trying to help her. Motivation is everything here. If you choose this option, think carefully about the source's motivation. It will help determine how the information comes out. This way is most likely to come out if someone knows for a fact the Prophet is her father.


2. The Guide discovers it through research due to her own curiousity.

This is entirely self-motivated and only really possible if she has the appropriate SA. The information can be fact or circumstantial.


3. The Guide is motivated to discover it to achieve some other goal. Maybe a she has been cursed and needs the blood of a male relative to remove the curse.


4. Dicovers it by accident, but the information has far reaching consequences.

I like 4. the best. Maybe, someone lets slip that the Prophet was in the same place as her mother nine months before her birth. She then discovers a little known fact that the Prophet was a sailor. Put two and two together and you might have four or possibly five. The Prophet might in fact have stolen someone else's identity. Back to the point. The information is dangerous to the Guide as some might use her to discredit or manipulate the Prophet. Others might try and eliminate her to dispose of the unwelcome evidence of the Prophet's less than holy past. Other factions may want her to be a puppet to help the Prophet. Happy families and all that. If the Prophet dies or dissappears she might be expected to carry on with her father's work.

I hope that helps.