PDA

View Full Version : [3.5] Demon With Possesion vs. Small Town



Claudius Maximus
2009-11-23, 12:09 AM
I've been thinking of sending my players into a town that has been completely ravished by a single demon with the possession ability. My first concern is the setting of the adventure, specifically the situation when the PCs find the town. Therefore, this is less about the PCs vs. the demon and more about the demon vs. the town.

The Town: I'm thinking a mining town in the mountains. Dwarves and humans, mostly. It's somewhat successful in mining and due to prospectors has grown to a respectable population, considering its inhospitable position. I'm thinking the larger side of a Small Town, like 1900 people or so. The problem is that during the winter months, the mountain passes can become pretty impassible. No NPC in the town is of a level higher than 8.

And here's where the demon comes in. At the start of winter somebody unearths it or something, and it just goes to town (literally). It's a Shadow Demon with FCI possession. I expect it can possess nearly anybody it wants, since the DC is 20 and the highest will save possible in the city is around +10. Its singular goal is to spread as much misery as possible throughout the city. It won't just kill people; it wants to see them suffer, and ultimately it wants the whole city to tear itself apart in an insane riot as everyone finally snaps.

So, I'm really asking for ideas and tactics. What sort of things would such a demon with complete control over the town do to make the population as miserable as possible? I imagine it can get the higher level NPC that pose a threat to it killed, and control the rest, so assume it can act with impunity.

Some ideas I have so far:

- As soon as it was in no real danger, it made its presence known to the public. Anybody you know could be possessed. That guy next to you? That could be the demon. Everyone is paranoid.

- Since people know about the demon, people are doing whatever they want and just claiming to have been possessed. Crime is rampant and the few remaining vestiges of law are powerless to stop it. People have taken to defend their property themselves, and it can get violent. This is just great for that paranoia thing.

- A good chunk of the population is cursed. The demon has possessed ts share of fountains and parks. It's usually the kind of curse that makes people hate you, or the kind that makes you act erratically or suspiciously, but sometimes it just screws you a bit more by making human contact cause physical pain or some other malicious curse.

- The demon has destroyed a good deal of the winter food stock, which is the majority of the food the town has for the winter. Lines are long and unsafe and fights over rationing are common. Those who leave to hunt frequently don't come back, since the demon wants it very clear that there's no escape, even temporarily.

- An inquisition has started, targeting anybody who is or might be possessed. The demon just loves this, and pretty much chooses its next targets by very obviously possessing them. Sometimes the demon leads the inquisitions itself, usually against innocents.

I know some of you can think of more evil and terrible ideas than these, so pitch away. It should be clear that I'm trying to make it a pretty horrific adventure, where they don't know who they can trust, and where even their best efforts can be met with failure and popular hostility. The PCs should arrive rather late in the situation, but things can certainly get worse from when they arrive, if they fail to stop things from progressing.

If I'm satisfied with this step, I might seek help with the PCs vs the demon (maybe changing the demon's type), but that's later.