(PF) PCs and unexpected twists.

[Sniper Pug]

So, Long time lurker, but signed up because I recognize I'm stumped on how to solve this role play issue with my players. First, a quick background of the PC in question. Sigurd, a Tiefling Inquisitor was born to two parents who vied for a child, and were fanatic worshipers of Lamashtu. The Mother of Monsters would grant their wish, slipping some fiendish blood into their next child. He would be taught in his first years the 'Majesty' of his 'Mother' by his parents until they eventually fell ill and died, leaving the (Comparitively, given Tiefling age) on his own, where he would explore the world in it's own form without the lens of the cult he was born into, and would come to realize just how evil his 'Mother' is.(Despite no longer affiliated with the cult of Lamashtu, he still refers to her as his mother, but has a clearly bitter tone when he refers to her in role play.) He entered play as a godless LG Tiefling Inquisitor with the redemption inquisition, figuring that it would make sense with his backstory, which he made without prior knowledge to the campaign.

Fast forward to after the fight with Nualia. The sorcerer is about to deal the finishing blow to her, Lamashtu abandoning her for her failures, finding it the worst punishment she could deal to Nualia, who would then have nothing. However, rather than slay Nualia, like I figured Sigurd would, given his hatred of his mother, he instead stops the sorcerer, claiming that it was a 'family matter', and rolled to improve her condition to the party by rolling diplomacy mixed with religion checks to bring her away from Lamashtu, And with the roles he got, I'm saying its at least a step in the right direction. The issue is figuring out what to do after. We're not shying away from mature themes, and many of the PCs are exploring relationships with the NPCs. Sigurd seems to have genuine compassion for Nualia, at the very least. But what should Naulia's reaction outside of the combat be to him now? We ended after he managed to get her to willingly surrender, as well as shake her beliefs from Lamashtu. to be exact, he rolled to do the following;

-Improve general temperament from hostile to neutral

-With the knowledge he found of her backstory, as well as huge his knowledge of religion, he got her to accept the true conditions of her miscarriage and the child, both being Lamashtu's fault. He did not, however, condone the actions of her adoptive father or first lover, instead telling her that she had all the right in the world to be angry.

-Convince her to back down from her plans, with the knowledge that Lamashtu had left her to the mercy of the PCs. She agreed to come with them to Sandpoint, at least for a time, in secret. Whether I want her to leave later, I'm not sure, but I don't want her as a recurring villain if she does eventually leave.. perhaps a path of redemption? Or a quest to remove her Mark of Lamashtu?

-Partially convince her that her celestial blood was not a blight.

So, this is all really up in the air. Any advice role play wise as well as veteran DM advice is extremely welcome

[Arc_knight25]

I too am running Rise of the Ruinlords. My group has just finished Catacombs of wrath and will be doing some side quests that I am making to further along their back stories. Before going to Thisletop.

That is quite the turn of events. What happened to Tsuto? Did the NPC's kill him, imprison or did he get away?

Has she finished her transformation into a demon?

If the PC shook her faith, would she not be devastated from her actions and her transformation from her celestial self.

Would she contemplate suicide from the grief of all of the death and destruction she has caused in the name of her now Forsaken Mother Lamashtu.

You could have her mentally break down. Making her catatonic, have the PC care for her till she regains her mental faculties. You can go more into detail on why she turned to evil. Maybe relating some of her story to that of the PC. Try to find similarities so the two can find comfort in one another. Come mid game you could give him Nualia as a follower or at very least and NPC that stays in town to help aid the party and the town for the coming troubles. But definitely have the PC expend time and a few resources to nurse her back to health.

This is an interesting turn of events.

For my own campaign I have one of the PC's being the estranged Father of Tsuto. The PC said he had amnesia so it really gave me a lot of options for his story. We'll see what the party does. The party did notice that he looked slightly like the PC in the party.

[Sniper Pug]

Yeah, Tsuto got caught and killed in the glassworks, and she only got as far as her arm's transformation. Sigurd managed to get information on her backstory by way of searching around and by 'visions'.

She did try to kill herself with her clawed hand but Sigurd stropped her by way of grappling. Told her if she wanted to be free from her actions, she shouldn't take the easy way out. She needs to live and rise above it to show she doesn't Lamashtu anymore.

But yeah, at the moment she's pretty much a log; the trauma of being abandoned again and the realization of what the 'Mother' did to her has sunk in and she's having a lot of issues coping. The tiefling implied he'll stick with her while he's needed.


For my own campaign I have one of the PC's being the estranged Father of Tsuto. The PC said he had amnesia so it really gave me a lot of options for his story. We'll see what the party does. The party did notice that he looked slightly like the PC in the party.

That actually sounds pretty neat. I'm trying to figure out how Nualia will respond to being saved by a tiefling, the flip side to her racial coin, so to speak. There will likely be a sub-plot that if the townspeople find out that she's alive but has been disfigured, they'll likely blame and threaten the tiefling, claiming his tainted blood somehow corrupted her.

[Segev]

Neutral to the party means she won't help them "for free" or out of compatriotism. However, neutral could still mean she needs something from them and will offer something in return.

It sounds like her world's fallen apart. She probably needs some sort of support. Being neutral towards the party means she is not unfriendly or hostile. She might turn to them for some sort of emotional support or bulwark. Maybe even demand of Sigurd that he tell her what to do. Not in a slavish way, but in the "What am I supposed to do now!?" sense. If he keeps working on improving her attitude towards the party and himself, she may even start to view him as a religious leader type figure, at least on a personal level. A mentor, since he's the one telling her a new philosophy.

The fact that he's the son of her former goddess could add to this, eventually causing her to try to replace Lamashtu in her life with Sigurd. Whether as her personal god (to whom she may try to convert worshippers) or just as a guru or master to her apprentice in his teachings. Like a monk with a young student.

[Sniper Pug]

Neutral to the party means she won't help them "for free" or out of compatriotism. However, neutral could still mean she needs something from them and will offer something in return.

It sounds like her world's fallen apart. She probably needs some sort of support. Being neutral towards the party means she is not unfriendly or hostile. She might turn to them for some sort of emotional support or bulwark. Maybe even demand of Sigurd that he tell her what to do. Not in a slavish way, but in the "What am I supposed to do now!?" sense. If he keeps working on improving her attitude towards the party and himself, she may even start to view him as a religious leader type figure, at least on a personal level. A mentor, since he's the one telling her a new philosophy.

The fact that he's the son of her former goddess could add to this, eventually causing her to try to replace Lamashtu in her life with Sigurd. Whether as her personal god (to whom she may try to convert worshippers) or just as a guru or master to her apprentice in his teachings. Like a monk with a young student.

That's an interesting take as well. . I'll keep that one in mind depending on how it goes.

[Sniper Pug]

As an update, I think that Nualia will become either a love interest to Sigurd (At least one sided) with time, or at the least, a companion. I have a downtime solo quest rule while we switch between different campaigns/DMs (Our 3.5 and 5e games... Still wrapping my head around that I just gave a War Hulk the Saint template in another game.), so I think I may put the two on a quest to cleanse her of her Mark, but I don't know if the arm will ever be reversible.. (Our 3.5 and 5e games... Still wrapping my head around that I just gave a War Hulk the Saint template in another game.) Now I need to figure out how to work this out. Thanks for all the advice thusfar.

[Ettina]

You could have her mentally break down. Making her catatonic, have the PC care for her till she regains her mental faculties.

I know trauma-induced catatonia is a common trope, but as a psych major, I'd just like to point out it's not very realistic. If you want to go for realistic reactions to trauma, look at PTSD, depression, and grief symptoms.

[Sniper Pug]

I know trauma-induced catatonia is a common trope, but as a psych major, I'd just like to point out it's not very realistic. If you want to go for realistic reactions to trauma, look at PTSD, depression, and grief symptoms.

Plus, they already go into a trauma-coma once... it was excessive enough, a second wouldn't really necessary. However, Depression, grief, and PTSD do sound like interesting character features to implement. That being said, I on't exactly want her to feel like she's become a burden on the PCs, but still sympathetic.(I'm NOT saying anyone with these is a burden, before the flames fly down upon me.)

So far the Sorceror, Romahl, Has some extreme hatred for her, being a former local to Sandpoint, believing her to be a traitor to her adoptive people. He wants to put judgement down on her, but Sigurd won't let him.

Sigurd(The inquisitor) feels responsible for her in a sense due to his own connections to Lamashtu, and wants to bring her back to the light. He's the one most likely to help her through the depression and loneliness.

Our rogue and druid is pretty impartial. They're more interested getting back to Sandpoint to make sure Orik doesn't cause issues and bolster defenses.

[Nibbens]

DMing RotRL here, and my PCs got a reoccurring villain out of her - due to her shattering one of the PCs family sword, but that's another story.

I'd say thrust a "Lust" sin at him and see if you can't rope him in that way. Nualia, being devastated at losing everything, not just once (her former lover), twice (her child and 'abandonment' from her father) but a third time (from her god), and now she's having a turn of mind. She lost, confused, hurt, full of rage, hated by many, and the only person showing compassion to her is a tiefling of all things. She could throw herself at him, and of course it would be wrong on so many levels for him to take advantage of her in this state, but that should definitely count for some sin points if he does follow through - or perhaps even Love virtue points if something blossoms for real.

As for her development, she could easily go to Magnimar (having been there before) and maybe set up a new life there - away from Sandpoint and its judgmental citizens. Could be a nice shock to see her there again when the PCs eventually go there or she could even wind up helping the PCs if she's 'more adjusted' now. etc etc.

[Sniper Pug]

DMing RotRL here, and my PCs got a reoccurring villain out of her - due to her shattering one of the PCs family sword, but that's another story.

I'd say thrust a "Lust" sin at him and see if you can't rope him in that way. Nualia, being devastated at losing everything, not just once (her former lover), twice (her child and 'abandonment' from her father) but a third time (from her god), and now she's having a turn of mind. She lost, confused, hurt, full of rage, hated by many, and the only person showing compassion to her is a tiefling of all things. She could throw herself at him, and of course it would be wrong on so many levels for him to take advantage of her in this state, but that should definitely count for some sin points if he does follow through - or perhaps even Love virtue points if something blossoms for real.

As for her development, she could easily go to Magnimar (having been there before) and maybe set up a new life there - away from Sandpoint and its judgmental citizens. Could be a nice shock to see her there again when the PCs eventually go there or she could even wind up helping the PCs if she's 'more adjusted' now. etc etc.


Alright. so, as this goes now, they made camp after they agreed not to kill her, but they kept her bound. She would free herself from her binds, but rather than run, she crept into Sigurd's(Tiefling) tent and tried to make a move on him. After waking, he rebuffed her initial approach, but allowed to her to rest with him and speak her mind. They went further in and killed Malfeshnekor, which helped her condition slightly, and has since taken a liking to her Tiefling friend. As a bit of irony, she cut a small lock of her hair and made a sort of tassel out of it, giving it to him as a good luck charm. (He was already aware of her backstory, but she then told him of her life, so he understands both the significance and irony.) She's debating whether or not to relocate to Magnimar or stay with the adventuring party, and is currently staying with them at The White Deer. Sigurd paid a substantial amount to keep Nualia a secret, as he doesn't want her to be assaulted by the inhabitants, and nearly blew it by bringing her back with a demon hand. (He already wasn't very welcome given his bloodline, coming back with their favorite aasimar tainted by devilry took a high roll to ease worries.) Romahl (Sorceror) decided to sneak out and have another night with Shayliss, part way because he disagrees with Sigurd's actions, and because he likes the idea of their (his own and Shayliss's) romance unbeknownst to her father. The rest of their party just chilled out, really. Celebrated their victory, did a bit of a bar crawl.

Sidenote, sort of funny how the Tiefling goes out and gives out charity, allows redemption of enemies, (Both Orik and Nualia,) and is just an all around good guy to a very superstitious village that is at best wary of him despite involvement in saving Sandpoint, while Romahl is universally loved for partying, getting drunk with the townsfolk, boasting, and having secret trysts with Shayliss as well as visiting the brothel regularly(He pays quite well there.) I need to figure out how these sin and virtue points work. I'm keeping track, but I'm not sure when they come into play.

[Arc_knight25]

I know trauma-induced catatonia is a common trope, but as a psych major, I'd just like to point out it's not very realistic. If you want to go for realistic reactions to trauma, look at PTSD, depression, and grief symptoms.

I was just staying general and giving idea's. It is a fantasy setting and characters can become catatonic for many reasons. It happens in writings all the time. But agreed that PTSD and other conditions can be used, just from a DM roleplay point of view the catatonic state can be much easier to portray.

The Sin and Virtue points come into play when they get to the Runeforge I beleive. It is like chaper 8 or 9 I want to say(Don't have the books with me). They can use the points they have to create weapons I believe, or at least something to that effect, you'll need to read about it and see how you want to implement it into your campaign.

[Sniper Pug]

Additional thought; What if they try to do a ritual to reverse her fiendish transformation? Maybe they could do a the ritual, and a succubus form could come from the hand? it'd be weakened, and flee, and could act as a reoccuring villian for the inquisitor, taking energy from his own blood and her previous corruption to come to life? I dunno, it was an idea.