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Farastu
2013-08-04, 02:56 PM
So I've been running a Ravenloft game. I really wanted to make it sufficiently horrific and personal, so I think I've managed that. Here's one of the noteworthy "series of events" that has transpired.

One of the players manages to get cue de graced in his sleep by the big bad (what leads up to this happening is itself a long story). I could just leave him dead, but there's more interesting things that can happen. So the big bad raised him as an undead minion. The group decided to allow the player-turned-undead back into their group (I expected more harsh reactions than I got, but I think most of these players aren't used to other PCs being used against them).

The player proceeded to have his character manipulate the entire group to unwittingly do the bidding of the very enemy they were trying to hunt down. This leads to a number of very bad things happening, most of it though, involves them trying to start a revolution in Falkovnia, which seems noble enough: start getting the oppressed non-humans to take action against their oppressors. The big bad wants this to happen too though, for he hopes that he can use it as an opportunity to seize power for himself.

Eventually the big bad decides for various reasons the group has outlived their usefulness and commands the undead PC to kill them.

While they are exploring underground ruins, undead guy manages to make a deal with a Yugoloth (demonic being) which is bound there, whom proceeds to aid him in murdering the rest of the group.

Yugoloth gets a hold of one PC and starts torturing him, PC eventually gets free just long enough to commit suicide (mainly because of him realizing that he is quite likely after this to get used the blood ritual which the Yugoloth speaks of).

Undead PC beats another character to a bloody pulp, finishing him off, and finally offers his own follower up as a blood sacrifice in order to complete a ritual (which the demonic entity guides him through completing).

Eventually a series of events led to resurrection being an option, and the undead character having his mind freed from the big bad, but not without all the survivors being horribly scarred (with one going insane for example).
Fortunately most of the players seem to have thoroughly enjoyed it. Of course they still have to deal with the big bad whom manipulated them, and the mess they have helped create.

LimeSkeleton
2013-08-04, 09:14 PM
Sounds like a really cool adventure! I balked a little at first at how the player who was killed in his sleep became an undead "minion" to the BBEG, but it seems like you have some excellent players that are willing to roll with the punches and stay in character no matter what. I'm sure the PCs' attempts at vengeance will make for some really fun sessions as well.

Farastu
2013-08-04, 11:37 PM
Absolutely.
Plus I was wanting to really really make this villain one that they very badly want to go after, and I think that having him manipulate them the way he did has accomplished this quite nicely. I've always had villains muck around in the world at large, but really wanted to see how they would handle a villain getting much more personal. There is one fellow that I get the impression really wasn't into the sort of inter-party intrigue or story in general that was getting spun (so I'll have to see if he decides it is worth his while to continue playing), but the others were very much drawn into it.

Yeah making the one PC an undead minion definitely could have failed miserably but the player did a great job with it.

Calmar
2013-08-06, 01:02 PM
That sounds like a really great adventure! You have awesome players, too, it seems. :smallsmile:

Farastu
2013-08-06, 05:31 PM
Yeah, and are all coming back for more it ends up, so that makes me glad. Now I am curious what they do next, since I've thrown them up against some pretty tough odds. That and they don't trust one another at all, but have to work together because of the situation they are in :sabine:

Calmar
2013-08-07, 06:20 AM
How do you manage the intrigues at the table? Do you use notes, talk separately with your players, or do all players know what their characters don't know?

Farastu
2013-08-07, 09:25 PM
Actually a combination of notes getting passed, and people breaking up into separate groups.
When it comes to me scheming (such as when I'm taking on the role of a villain commanding a player character, as was the case with the above mentioned undead character) I tend to keep things pretty basic and let the players really elaborate, so that they have wiggle room as far as how they can interpret things, and that way they can be creative about their backstabbing and what not. I think that's a lot more fun way to handle the situation than just seizing total control of the PC and turning them into an NPC (plus it is less blatantly obvious that they have somehow fallen under someone else's influence).

I was honestly also torn between giving any of them a chance to be resurrected, but I think the opportunity to play out the resulting issues this will have created within the group is way too tempting. Plus they all are hurting pretty bad for it (as I don't like anyone to get out of dying without some serious consequences, death even when reversible shouldn't be cheapened so much as it is in most games IMO, though this issue really is a whole other one that I'm sure there's been plenty of threads debating).

They are out of a really hot frying pan into the fire now anyhow as far as their current situation goes.