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Tim Proctor
2013-09-05, 05:26 PM
So I am running the beginning adventure for a group, they were told to make characters that could live in a city and interact with society as a whole (that was it everything else is free game). I am not expecting any min/maxing or anything, the system is 3.5 but that doesn't really matter at this point.

Below is the notes I've made, lots of puns, and jokes. The group is really good with that stuff, but I want to make sure that they have a very enjoyable time.

The group finds themselves at a Courthouse, not because they did anything but because they were selected for jury duty. The Greco-roman-esque style of the city and courthouse ruminate of a state of higher education and civilization that just isn’t present in reality. Beyond the old city, where marble structures rise, old shanty-slums fill the surrounding area as far as the eye can see. In honesty the nobility of the city have maintained as much as they could and the need for law and order is extremely present, with over one million in slums and extreme poverty surrounding them.
In the interior walls of the Courthouse the groups sees the following postage as they are escorted by a grip of guards.

Public Enemy #1
Tiberius Noblis Tyrannus
A grotesque picture of an half orc covered in scars.
Dirty, mean, mighty unclean
Warning to public: If seen, lockup daughters and wives, head to back door and run for life.
WANTED MAN – 5,000g

The group is seated in the courtroom and the trial begins.
Octavius Julius famed Elven hippodrome racer is accused of the murder of his ex-wife and her new-lover. They were found dead, slashed brutally. The weapon and a bloody gauntlet were found at the scene.
A magistrate inspector Virgil Tibbs investigated Octavius’s residence in the heat of the night and when it was found empty, he investigated and found a matching bloody gauntlet. The defense is arguing that Virgil is a racist and planted the evidence because he used the phrase ‘leafsnoots’ numerous times in reference to elves, which is one of the most racist terms.

As the cases comes to a close only two witnesses remain the medical examiner and the defendant himself.
Judge: “Doctor, how many autopsies have you performed on dead people?”
The Doctor:” All my autopsies are on dead people.”
Judge: “Let the record show that both victims are dead. No further questioning”.

The medical examiner steps off the stand and Octavius swears in to the Elven god and sits down.
Judge: “Did you kill the victims?”
Octavius: “No, I did not.”
Judge: “Do you know what the penalties are for perjury? “
Octavius: “Yes, I do. And they're a hell of a lot better than the penalty for murder.”
The judge has no other relevant questions for Octavius but does call a rebuttal witness, the house guest of the victims an elf named Kato Cailin. The judge asks Kato what happened and Kato explains that he heard bumps in the area and came and saw a person standing over the slain victims. The judge asks if Kato sees the person who was standing over the victims.
Kato: "Yes, that is him. I saw him clear as day. I'd remember his face anywhere."
At which point, Octavius bursts out, "You couldn't see my face. I was wearing a mask!". The judge orders order in the court and secures the jury to make deliberations and find a verdict.

Regardless of the verdict, there is an angry mob outside waiting to flay them and citywide riots break out.
Guilty: the city is rioting because the racisms and police state brought on by humans and whenever an elf gains money corrupt justice takes it from them.
Not Guilty: the city is rioting because the corrupt justice system and celebrities and lords can commit atrocities without any punishment or threat of law, while the poor are subjugated.

The group is ushered into protective services where they are given new names and identities, and relocated into the transient and dangerous part of town, they are told to lay low as their houses are burned and families killed. IF members choose to fight then they face a human mob but are rescued by guards before they can actually die.
At the local Adventurer’s Guild they see three postings, and the patrons will answer any generic questions they have.

Posting # 1
The Old Mill has been taken over, the Miller’s Guild is looking for adventurers to reclaim the mill please contact Mr. Miller at the Miller’s Guild house. 250 gold.
Posting #2
House Kay is looking for adventurers to retrieve Beholder eye’s for raw materials in Alchemy, 100 gold per small eye and 1.000 gold per large eye, eyes pupa must in undamaged. Please contact Mary of House Kay for more details.
Posting #3
The Abandoned Quarry is looking to be reclaimed by the Mason’s guild. Please contact Gwinli Shortfoot at the Mason’s Guild for more information. 250 gold.

@The Quarry, the group sees an open quarry and once they are firmly in they see a hulking mass of rock which bears a humanoid torso, a flat head with glowing eyes, and two muscular stone arms encircled by giant copper bracers. Its torso trails away into a pile of formless rock that floats along the ground.
Earth Elemental, Medium -SRD
“Funny, I must take killing adventurers for granite, but they keep coming.”
“I’m going to rock your world.”
"let's get to the core of the matter"
“I want to have impact for the crater good.”
“Every time I try to be gneiss I get the schist beat out of me…”

@House Kay, the group sees what can only be explained as a medieval factory and they are easily able to find Mary who is a strikingly beautiful woman. She is talking to an alchemist and she says:
“Yes, beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder. You drain the liquid, heat it, mix it, and add in the flowers so that it doesn’t smell like **** anymore and that’s how you do it.”
She tells the group that they are too low level to handle Beholders, and they should save that work for the big boys.

@The Mill, the group seen an overgrown lumber mill with vines and other vegetation contaminating the machinery. The group sees what resemble highly beautiful human or elven women only made out of smooth, brown-green wood, and with grass and leaves for hair. Stepping into and out of trees with some form of localized teleportation by entering one tree and then magically appearing out of another nearby one.
Dryad - SRD
“You adventurers can never cedar forest for the trees”
“A lot of trees were dying, but they needed to figure out the root of the problem. So they sent me”
“Once you’re dead I’ll be releafed.”
“Don’t make jokes about me; it’s a knock on wood”
“Usually once I sense danger I pack up my trunk and leave”
“Why won’t you leaf us alone”

erikun
2013-09-05, 06:16 PM
Uh.... okay? Could you restate the question?

Because your jokes are appropriately punny, I will give you that. I would recommend the Elemental/Dryad have a bit of non-combat time to chat with the PCs and deliver their puns, rather than spit them out at random during a fight. Then again, I don't know your group.

If the question is if the encounter is appropriate, then the biggest problem I see is that you're telling them a story for 30 minutes and then allowing them to go on one of three* pre-assigned missions. Again, not sure what your group is like, but I'd like a bit more freedom than that.

*You know why this asterisk is here.

Tim Proctor
2013-09-06, 11:05 AM
The question I guess is two-fold, is this enough for an initial adventure and are there too many jokes included?

The court story shouldn't take 30-minutes, from what I've timed it should take maybe 10 minutes at most. Its actually there to let them talk about the verdict and which way they want to go with it, to establish PC personalities.

The jokes/references included are:

The Wanted Poster, is from AC/DC's song TNT

The Trial is the OJ Simpson Trial, thus the name Octavius Julius

Virgil Tibbs was the detective from the old series In The Heat of The Night

Then there are three court proceeding jokes

A Punny Elemental

And then Beauty is in the eye of the Beholder joke.

Ravian
2013-09-06, 11:46 AM
Well it really depends on your group's style. For me I prefer more serious games (the player's are going to make all the humor it needs) but the way you describe your group this sounds like a very good humorous romp, again I really can't judge without knowing your group.