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View Full Version : {Eberron 3.5} Dragon Overlord Campaign Help



LichPrinceAlim
2010-02-11, 08:56 AM
He y'all. I have 24hrs for a 5th level Gestalt Dragon-ruled Eberron. The dragons took over after the Seven Century War (post-"cannon" Eberron) with a council of High Dragons (7 Chromatic Dragons, including Purple and a Prysmatic). Also, Draconians out of Dragonlance are the upper-class.

The PCs begin in a volcanic prison (the prison is in the mouth of an active volcano). The plan is the volcano is near eruption, and the PCs must escape in FFVII fashion before the whole thing goes badly. They'll have a few encounters of mostly mooks, namely Draconic Orcs with weapons of their respective dragons (ie: a Draconic Orc of the Red would weild a Fire Longsword).

The party is semi-optimized, and I gave everyone Half-Dragon (except one, who chose Feral Saint) and are all veteran PCs. Mostly, the party is using pure WotC, except one, who's using a homebrew Assassin bc and an ACF for ninja (giving up some ki abilities in favor of a FoB-esq ability. Note: I treat Sudden Strike like Sneak Attack for use). The party is looking foreward to this campaign, which will encompass all of Eberron (including a climactic showdown over the Dragon's home continent, which has become the capital).

My questions are few:

1. Is this a good combination for my PCs to sink their teeth into? I mean, with the scope and the sheer diffuculty curve, is this almost too open?

2. I want the PCs to use a lot of cool "toys" (for instance: One PC is a Psi-Warrior//Swordsage focused on Twin Hooks) and are allowed almost any gear from any book (minus firearms. That system sux). Is this too much freedom?

3. I'm planning on most "boss" battles against Dragons (adult and up). However, I realize Dragons can be overpowered (glares at Shadow Dragon). What are some good ideas for Dragon villains? I already forsee an Aspect of Ashardalon later in the PCs' future...

4. All of the PCs that are Half-Dragon are "exiles", with the Feral Saint as an exiled Wild Elf Prince, who plays LG. How would I have NPCs act near them, based on Race of course!

5. Other tips?


Thanks to all of you who insert any thoughts and may your dice never roll below a 15...

LichPrinceAlim
2010-02-11, 12:10 PM
any1?????????????????????????

LichPrinceAlim
2010-02-11, 01:59 PM
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Physics_Rook
2010-02-11, 07:13 PM
I think it's a very cool concept, and it sounds like you've got a good set of players ready for some ol' fashioned dragon-fighting fun.

If I may, I'd offer what advice I can think of for you.

1.
As already covered, I think this campaign should be rockin' awesome.

2.
I think you'll be just fine. If your PCs are going in against an entire world that's almost completely set against them (being exiles and all), than giving them a bit of an edge probably isn't going to be game breaking.

Worst case might be that you have to throw a few more mooks at them, or up the CR of the monsters they encounter. In my opinion, the less a player's freedom it curtailed the better.

3.
Remember to shuffle around the creatures you use in a "boss" fight. All dragon all the time is great for primetime tv shows, but a little variety can go a long way for your players.

If you want dragon bosses that are challenging without being overpowering, consider using younger dragons that have been "enhanced" by templates (official or homebrew). Consider adding pre-battle buffs to your dragon bosses (permanencied or otherwise), to increase their effectiveness.

4.
That might depend heavily on how the NPCs see their world. Are the dragon leaders benevolent, and the PCs evil (and any variant thereof)?

The uninformed might lump the PCs into whatever group they associate with the dragons (for good or for ill). The mildly informed might be wary or feaful of the PCs, given that they are exiles of presumable criminal status. And lastly, those people in the know might try and take advantage of the PCs predicament.

5.
Personally, I always try to have at least three factions competing against each other at any given time. This helps to keep you away from the archetypical good vs evil conflict (which isn't really Eberron's thing), and it helps to draw out a player's motivation.

Besides that, have fun!:smallsmile:

Prime32
2010-02-11, 07:38 PM
Note that feral saint is quite a bit more powerful than half-dragon. The other PCs probably aren't even getting wings. There's a tier system for templates being worked on (http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=7044.0) which currently lists both saint and feral as Tier 1, and half-dragon as Tier 4. This depends on his build though - a feral wizard is rather pointless (and any LA screws casters over - you're only applying it to one side of the gestalt, right?).

Consider dragonborn instead. Possibly without removing most of their old racial traits.

Or let one guy be feral and give the others the draconic template - that should be more even.

Can you post some more complete info on each PC?


On enemies, for some variety take a look at the sovereign archetypes from Dragons of Eberron and the alternate abilities from Races of the Dragon. Both of those are obvious reads for this campaign anyway.

Are you using the purple dragon from Dragon magazine? If so, you have to give someone a Megatron-hand graft. :smalltongue:

Splendor
2010-02-11, 10:42 PM
Since it's kinda Eberron...

Well the PCs may find help from strange places: Daelkyr rebels, Lords of Dust who want less competition, underground members of the blood of vol and Karranthi undead, the elves of aerenal, the reestablished empire of giants in Xen'drik and the last free hold out against the dragons the warforged resistance in the mournland. Heck maybe a quori/kalashar alliance from sarlona could even help.