Eberron campaign plot problem

[DM Eberron D]

Greetings everyone, I am watching this communitylong time now and it's now time for me to be part of it. Nice to be with you :)

Im currently running a campaign inEberron however im new in long-terms DMing My previous DM experience is single or 1-2 sessions so I am stuck right now.

I started with the default Eberron scenario (the forgotten forge) and run through Shadows of the last war.
Problem is that players never handed the pattern to Lady E. They kept it out out of world once again so none can have it. The thing is that it has to be stolen according to the next episode "Grasp of the emerald claw" and now it is in a safe, armored with nondetection magic, of the father of one of the pPCs.

Thoughts? How can I get back to the plot without my PCs feel cheated by the DM?

[Lord Vukodlak]

Greetings everyone, I am watching this communitylong time now and it's now time for me to be part of it. Nice to be with you :)

Im currently running a campaign inEberron however im new in long-terms DMing My previous DM experience is single or 1-2 sessions so I am stuck right now.

I started with the default Eberron scenario (the forgotten forge) and run through Shadows of the last war.
Problem is that players never handed the pattern to Lady E. They kept it out out of world once again so none can have it. The thing is that it has to be stolen according to the next episode "Grasp of the emerald claw" and now it is in a safe, armored with nondetection magic, of the father of one of the pPCs.

Thoughts? How can I get back to the plot without my PCs feel cheated by the DM?

Have them learn that the pattern has been stolen they will immedately rush back to check on the chest and find to there great relief the pattern is still there, however it was all a trick by the bad guys to follow the PC's back to where they stashed the McGuffin the villains can then steal it after the PC's have left.

[DM Eberron D]

This will not work in this case but I appreciate the attempt. none had the same problem with me in this premade adventure?

[AntiTrust]

what happened to the copy of the pattern? IIRC there were two copies of the schema

[DM Eberron D]

It is two copies of the scema, just one copy of the creation pattern

[FrznTear]

I DMing this path too, currently on eyes of the lich queen. I have an idea that might solve your problem.

Can you think of a way for Garrow to reobtain the schema? He has the advantage of being a changeling for infiltration and the advantage of cleric spells.

Locate object is available but the pattern is protected from detection? Assuming he was given the fake schema to prevent a fight he could have figured out that the schema he was given was a fake (detect magic) and then proceeded to locate object or circle dance to follow the PC's. When locate object stops working (the schema is placed in the vault) garrow uses his abilities as a changeling to infiltrate and steal it.

You need this otherwise there is no XULOLOLOLOLO~!

My players were mad at themselves for entrusting the schema and pattern to elaida. haha

[Lord Vukodlak]

This will not work in this case but I appreciate the attempt. none had the same problem with me in this premade adventure?

Why doesn't it work?
If you need you need to figure out where X has hidden something the best way to do it is to convince X you've already found it so he rushes off to check his hiding place. They just need to leak that information to the PC's.

Now were they all protected from scrying the moment they found this thing to the moment they hid it? Someone could have been watching them hide it in that chest.

*also nondetection can be beaten by a caster level check. So even if its a nondetection chest that only make finding it more difficult not impossible.

Or maybe the Agents ransacked the house looking to kidnap the PC's father to ransom him back for the pattern but inadvertently found the chest. Gather Information checks could be used to figure out the friends and family members of the PC's

Having it stolen isn't necessarily cheating the PC's, explain to me how its impossible for the enemy to know the PC's possessed the pattern.

Or maybe invent a crisis that requires all the patterns be brought together or tens of thousands of people will die. Doesn't even need to be a real crisis it could just be the Agents disguised as someone the PC's trust

Either think of or accept a way for it to be stolen from the PC's or sit them down and apologize before explaining the next module requires the McGuffin be stolen or the adventure arc ends today and we move onto something else.

[DM Eberron D]

Ok, it's actually not that simple since I flavored the scenario with pieces of my own. The pattern is in a divination warded safe, plus none really knows that it is found. They just did not give it. Which means none has an actual and legit reason to scry on it.

I was thinking of forgetting it about now and have Lady E. killed because Merrix is really tired with her inability to find the pattern. Maybe they feel kind of guilty and do a mistake trying to oppose Merrix.

As for Garrow he has no idea that the pattern is found. Only the PCs know and its qsecret among them.

[Ignominia]

Ok, so they ran through the forgotten forge, obtained the schema and didn't turn THAT one in?

Or,

Ran through Shadows of the Last War, obtained the schema, the schema copy and the creation pattern and didn't turn THAT one in?

If they didn't turn in the schema from the forgotten forge, its no big deal, Lady E sends them on the second quest anyway.

If they didn't turn in the schema from Shadows of the Last War, (and presumably defended themselves from the superior force that Garrow brought down on them at the end of the adventure) Then you are still ok to run Whispers of the Vampires Blade (it has little to do with the hunt for the schemas) but when it comes to Grasp of the Emerald Claw they DO need to be stolen.

I suggest having the Emerald Claw soldiers still break into Elaydrens house and roughing her up, demanding to know the identities of the adventurers that she sent after the schemas, they then steal the notes that pertain to the where abouts of the fourth schema.

Then insert an encounter where they Emerald Claw blackmails the PC's into turning over their copy of the schemas (he only has to THINK they have them, he doesn't need confirmation) Use someone the PC's care for as a hostage, or simply strong arm them, bring in a wildly unbalanced encounter, knock them around to the point that they realize they have no hope of winning or escape and then have them lead Garrow directly to the location of the schemas they have stashed.

Its a bit heavy handed for a DM to pull out all the stops like that, but they need to have turned in the schemas for the story to progress.

A friendly tip when running an adventure path, always try to read the synopsis of each adventure before running the first. It gives you an idea of where the adventure is going, who needs to be alive and what events need to occur etc. It will help prevent a complication like this in the future!

Good luck! and Welcome to the Forums!:smallsmile:

[DM Eberron D]

They picked the scema of the Forgotten Forge, they traded the duplicate schema to Garrow for their freedom and they picked up the creation pattern. Now Elaydren has the two schemas but she has no idea about the creation pattern because they decided to keep it secret.

Thus the creation pattern cannot be stolen because none has a clue its discovered

[Alienist]

Why not have another schema stolen? Instead of N parts there are N+1, and she sent a different group to obtain that one? The PCs aren't the only group of adventurers in Eberron.

[137beth]

Thus the creation pattern cannot be stolen because none has a clue its discovered
Oh, this part is easy: Scrying shards. Someone was scrying on the PCs when the discussed "not telling anyone about the creation pattern":smalltongue:

[Lord Vukodlak]

Thus the creation pattern cannot be stolen because none has a clue its discovered
Garrow tracks down the (former) location of the creation pattern finds its already gone and just assumes the PC's must have it already because they gave him a forgery.

Or maybe after finding out about the forgery he goes after the PC's families in revenge and by coincidence finds the pattern as you said they left it with the dad of a PC.