Some advice needed on bad situation

[FaerieDrgn]

Hey guys,

So I've had to quit my gaming group because of too much RL drama, but the DM and I agreed that I could keep playing, but just without a group. We are running my "sessions" parallel to the actual group, so just in case I end up going back, it'll be easier. My problem at the moment is that I'm stuck and need some advice on what to do next. I have several possibilities in mind, but I can't think of everything that could go wrong.

Here's a bit of back story. My char's soul was split into two, a good side and an evil side (the good side is my original character). A demon lord, bent on the destruction of the world, got ahold of my char, and released the evil side, sending the good side to a type of slumber for 10 yrs. The good side finally wakes up, and finds herself married to a vampire, queen of a nation, everyone terrified of her, and above all else, no memories of the past 10 years.

My actions thus far have included faking an illness to get a healer to talk to her privately about the events that have gone on in the past 10 years, and the tried avoidance of her husband, the king. She has bluffed her way through the obsticle of her husband, but she can't keep that up very long, considering the fact that she was once a healer and took an oath to never harm anyone. Her evil side not only killed a lot of people, but killed her own brother, his wife and unborn child.

The only choices I can come up with are as follows:
1. She can run away either to:
-resistance camps, where i'm sure her welcome would be less than warm...
-some other part of the land where she would hide
2. Kill the King and rule the country, but I don't think the people would go for that...
3. Live her life in fear, deception and avoidance at the palace until the group does something, which could be never knowing this group. There is also the fact that the King could find out that she isn't what she was and renew the ritual that brought out the evil side.

So I'm at a loss as to what to do. I don't want to abandon the country, since she is the last of the royal family since her brother died. But I don't want the chance to turn evil again. I can only do so much avoiding and bluffing, the dice have a habit of favoring me for a while before they turn on me (there really is no middle ground with me and the dice...). So any suggestions or advice? I am favoring one option more than the others, but advice would be great.

(Btw, the DM and I sort of agreed to this "slumber" thing. I couldn't be there a couple of sessions and so the DM came up with this so he wouldn't have to play my char. Also, the whole group ended up dying except for me, and are starting with new characters 10yrs later in the game. And I really wanted to continue with this char, so yea...)

[BowStreetRunner]

Well, your choices (and you have more than just the ones you mentioned in your post) should reflect your character's personality first and foremost. So while I could tell you what I would do, it is difficult to tell you what would be the best option for your character without having a lot more info on her personality.

That having been said, a couple of things bear mentioning.

First, she needs to address the question of which would be worse - death, or going back to being the evil queen. Somehow I think your character will find the risk of death to be preferable to the risk of becoming evil again.
Next, she should probably rank her sense of obligation. To whom is she indebted the most in her mind? How strong is her feeling of filial duty? How about her debt to those her evil side harmed? Does she feel she owes it to herself to take charge of her own destiny? What about her duty to the people of the country? She may even feel she needs to pay for the crimes she committed while evil. In the end, whichever debt is foremost in her consideration will guide her actions.
Finally, she should really consider what resources are available to her and whether they give her the ability to actually accomplish any of these options. Does she actually have a realistic chance of killing the king? If not, then it's not necessary to consider that option. Running away might not be that easy either. Her decision might be limited to what she can realistically accomplish, not what she wishes she could do.

[FaerieDrgn]

Thanks, I can only discuss so much with myself before going crazy... But these questions will be helpful. She feels a duty to "clean up" after her evil self, to right the things that have gone wrong (like the reintroduction of slavery, the banishment of paladins and clerics, etc). She knows that she cannot bring back the dead, that is a god's power, but she wants to leave the world in better shape than it is, expecially since in the last campaign it was the party's fault the demon lord got loose. And yes, to her death is preferable to being evil again, but again she has a duty to do before she leaves the world of the living.

as for running away... It wouldn't be the first time she's run away from the palace >.>

Thanks for the questions, I will definitely have to think those over before making my next move.

[Phelix-Mu]

Depending on the resources you want to devote to lying, I'm sure whatever resistance there is might accept you as a kind of spy behind enemy lines. Granted, as queen you are maybe a little too close to the action to be an ideal spy, but if you are fairly charismatic and resourceful, I'm sure you can garner some support in your domestic circle, people willing to risk death to help you lead a double life.

Not sleeping with vampire husband is tricky. But I would note, if you are the actual person of royal blood, you should ask the DM if the vampire husband actually inherited all of your authority when he married you, or if you are actually higher in station than him. If the queen is the real ruler, then you may not be obligated to sleep with your husband, or associate with him much at all. Obviously, you'd need some kind of cover story to explain your sudden change of behavior, and the vampire husband is still a real threat in a physical sense (he would risk being discovered to have assaulted the queen, though, which might end his political ambitions). Worth exploring, though.

Finally, you can always avoid the vampire danger by daytime activities and plenty of long walks outside with your confidantes. Even after 10 years of b*#chdom, I'm sure there are still people loyal to the old republic...I mean royal family. If you can explain your plight to some of them, people that knew you before the ritual maybe, then you should have a chance. If all else fails, a horse at high noon seems a good escape option.

All of this is highly dependent on what you can pull off by character build or role play finesse. Good luck, especially with irl group shenanigans; the story sounds so cool that it would be a shame if it all went to hell.

[Telok]

Hire a doppleganger to kill and impersonate the king. Then unmask the imposter and kill it. While the nobility (or other people profiting from evil regime changes) squabble with each other and try to unseat you contact the old loyalists and explain about the whole demon posession thing. Help the old loyalists win the resulting civil war against the corrupt nobility and come out smelling likes roses.

Alternately try to research the "evil demon twin" ritual and see if you can reverse it. Use the reversed ritual on the king.

[Juntao112]

Be a dutiful wife and stay with the king. Cook his meals for him. I suggest starting off a nice evening banquet with a dry wet wine and roasted garlic soup.

[Canis Wolfsong]

Soon..........

Joining a resistance faction probably wouldn't work. If you're going to run away, you'll probably want to leave your country for a while.