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View Full Version : Plot hook ideas for my players!



MonkeySage
2015-01-30, 01:57 PM
Alright, last night I was running a side quest for my players and one of them, the one who up till now was most invested in the main storyline, quit.

So I've got a bit of a problem. I want to interest my players in the main plot and I'm scraping for hooks in a shallow pail.

The Plot thus far: The players have been sent on a mission to investigate(under the leadership of quitter) a rise in goblinoid activity. The goblins, hobgoblins, and bugbears are working together on a huge scale, apparently united by a single figure going by the title The Ram. They've arrived in northern kingdom, where until recently the goblins have been a pretty significant problem. Once again, it seems the Empire has stepped in and saved the day, provided said kingdom swears fealty to them.
The players have also been attacked by assassins who apparently represent a new name, The Wolf. They learned from the assassins that The Ram had a contract out for them and wanted The Wolf to take care of them.

In a dungeon, they read from the diary of a bugbear commander that The Ram and The Wolf are in an alliance with one other person, The Hart. The Ram's job is pressure, the Wolf is in charge of intelligence, and the Hart, "public relations". The Ram is trying to organize goblinoid armies to exert pressure on small defenseless kingdoms, he's apparently a cleric. They have yet to properly identify either of the other two.

The Players:
Now since both the leader and his brother left, our group is now made up of-
A half orc blood rager (CE) - he is motivated by revenge against the hobgoblins who destroyed his clan(they stole his kills!)
A dwarf druid (LN) - Is deeply upset because apparently a bunch of hobgoblins chopped down his former forest home, and slaughtered the local druid coven(even he had a beef with them, he didn't want them dead).
A tiefling alchemist(CN) - is a complete foreigner, motivated by greed and a thirst for knowledge.

The dwarf and the absent leader were both sent on a mission, but until now the only thing driving the dwarf was curiosity and wanderlust.

Of the three of them, only the dwarf has been a consistent member of the larger party, he's been there pretty much from the beginning, but only recently learned of what happened to his coven.

Hazrond
2015-01-30, 02:29 PM
Alright, last night I was running a side quest for my players and one of them, the one who up till now was most invested in the main storyline, quit.

So I've got a bit of a problem. I want to interest my players in the main plot and I'm scraping for hooks in a shallow pail.

The Plot thus far: The players have been sent on a mission to investigate(under the leadership of quitter) a rise in goblinoid activity. The goblins, hobgoblins, and bugbears are working together on a huge scale, apparently united by a single figure going by the title The Ram. They've arrived in northern kingdom, where until recently the goblins have been a pretty significant problem. Once again, it seems the Empire has stepped in and saved the day, provided said kingdom swears fealty to them.
The players have also been attacked by assassins who apparently represent a new name, The Wolf. They learned from the assassins that The Ram had a contract out for them and wanted The Wolf to take care of them.

In a dungeon, they read from the diary of a bugbear commander that The Ram and The Wolf are in an alliance with one other person, The Hart. The Ram's job is pressure, the Wolf is in charge of intelligence, and the Hart, "public relations". The Ram is trying to organize goblinoid armies to exert pressure on small defenseless kingdoms, he's apparently a cleric. They have yet to properly identify either of the other two.

The Players:
Now since both the leader and his brother left, our group is now made up of-
A half orc blood rager (CE) - he is motivated by revenge against the hobgoblins who destroyed his clan(they stole his kills!)
A dwarf druid (LN) - Is deeply upset because apparently a bunch of hobgoblins chopped down his former forest home, and slaughtered the local druid coven(even he had a beef with them, he didn't want them dead).
A tiefling alchemist(CN) - is a complete foreigner, motivated by greed and a thirst for knowledge.

The dwarf and the absent leader were both sent on a mission, but until now the only thing driving the dwarf was curiosity and wanderlust.

Of the three of them, only the dwarf has been a consistent member of the larger party, he's been there pretty much from the beginning, but only recently learned of what happened to his coven. i think i haved figured your plot out, continuing on. maybe have more assassins come after them, maybe use a nasty poison that you dont think will kill them, then havve one of them havve a convenient note to where the assassins are working from, or where the goblins are massing a force. nothing gets people readyy to slash goblin throats like a personal attack in my opinion

Beta Centauri
2015-01-30, 03:04 PM
Alright, last night I was running a side quest for my players and one of them, the one who up till now was most invested in the main storyline, quit.

So I've got a bit of a problem. I want to interest my players in the main plot and I'm scraping for hooks in a shallow pail. Tell the players what the main plot is, and ask them what would hook their characters. If they're interested in the plot, they'll tell you. If they're not, you'll learn that and can try something else. Maybe ask them what plot would interest them.

wobner
2015-01-30, 06:43 PM
can you tell us more about the players themselves or how they play? i mean people could rattle off a few appropriate hooks but if its not in their interest it won't matter, and i'd go with beta centauri and just ask them. and really, with those alignments, it is going to be hard if they are playing them faithfully(in my oppinion)

honestly, with chaotic evil, and chaotic neutral, without knowing how those people play, i would have to go with either dangling alot of wealth/power infront of them, or going the revenge route mentioned by hazrond. could the CE be given the impression he could take over the group if he took out the leaders? might work for the CN too, you have three antagonists and three protagonists, it almost seems a perfect fit, with the CN taking over intelligence and the CE taking over the pressure, not sure how the dwarf druid could possibly be made to fit... although if this is just a side quest that might be too over the top.

is it possible to pull some kind of neverwinter nights 2 esque soul theft on the three of them? or similiar "curse"? forcing them to go after the antagonists?

there is the good old end of the world scenario, depending on your antagonists and plot. or atleast a plan for the world where the group wouldn't want to live. if the enemy is lawful evil and planning an oppressive, orderly controlled society of evil that technically hooks all three, although again, prolly too severe for a side quest.

you could have the antagonists file a lawsuit against the adventures.*cough* that might upset them enough to get them motivated.