Campaign Idea: Minions

[Centik]

Now, I know the title might lead you to believe I plan on running a campaign surrounding those adorable little yellow guys from Despicable Me, yet, no matter how adorable that might be, that's not where i'm headed.

I was thinking about running an evil campaign when it hit me: I could run a campaign wherein the players are the undead minions of a lich. The players pick their race, class, etc before death (probably without them knowing what they're getting into) and the campaign intro begins with their ultimate demise and resurrection by the Lich in question.

It's a toss up between an evil campaign, a campaign where the players break free from the Lich's hold somehow or possibly the Lich being, generally, an alright fellow and using his minions(the players) to better the world.

My one real concern is stats when the players are turned undead; do I just go with a similar stat block from the monster manual? Another thing would be setting; are there any adventure paths this would work with or am I going to straight up homebrew it?

Any advice or ideas would be awesome. I'd be DMing for a group of 2, so story and RP would be in the foreground.

Thanks in advance,
Centik

[JDL]

If this were 3.5, I'd recommend you just slap a Necropolitan template on them and be done with it. Provided you're happy to splash 3.5 stuff into Pathfinder, it's probably the most balanced way to turn your characters undead.

Note that healing and spells that target humanoid creatures may not work as smoothly, but it's still a viable proposition.

[Centik]

If this were 3.5, I'd recommend you just slap a Necropolitan template on them and be done with it. Provided you're happy to splash 3.5 stuff into Pathfinder, it's probably the most balanced way to turn your characters undead.

Note that healing and spells that target humanoid creatures may not work as smoothly, but it's still a viable proposition.

I like that. Might add a bit more for their sake, as they'll probably be fighting other adventurers. Possibly DR5 Slash and Pierce?

[JDL]

Provided you don't mind getting asked what type of damage that attack was every other round.

[Centik]

Provided you don't mind getting asked what type of damage that attack was every other round.

Haha, my group is a couple of knuckleheads, so I expect things like that at this point! :smallbiggrin:

[SkipSandwich]

There's actually a stand-alone game with this as it's exact premise called "My life with Master". With the players taking the role of Igor's to the eponymous "Master". Minions are expected carry out the Master's wishes, while acting as a screen between the Master and their mad experiments and the local townspeople (who are preyed upon by/for said experiments).

There are couple ways the game can end, from the Townspeople or oppressed Minions themselves disposing and killing the Master, to the death of all Minions as they "have failed him for the last time" to the Master finally unleashing their Doomsday Device or Taking over the World.

[Sayt]

Just give them the Skeletal Champion, Juju Zombie, or Zombie Lord templates.

Also, let them they need charisma instead of constitution. First character I ever played was a frontliner with 6 Charisma. Would have just thrown away the character sheet when he got undead-ed.