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View Full Version : DM Help How do you run an end of the world plot right?



MonkeySage
2016-07-27, 02:21 PM
I've been running this game for a few years now, my players are now level 9, so I've still got quite a bit of time.

I want to see if it's possible to set things up so that the players are pretty much responsible for the impending apocalypse; the emperor is trying to strike down a demon cult that's trying to bring about an apocalypse. The players do not yet know about the demon cult. All they see is a tyrannical ruler whom they have every reason to hate. They've been sent on a quest to retrieve a sword from an elven ruin, unknowingly by a member of said cult.

There are several such weapons, which basically serve as keys to a lock. If the demon cult gets all of them, they can open the lock.

But a few things: For one, without railroading the players, I need to get them to hand over the "keys" they already have to this cult(they've so far got one).

And I need to run the whole end of the world thing properly; I don't want it to be something that just comes out of the blue. I want it to be something the PCs 1) Know about months in advance, and 2) Know that they caused....

And if I execute this poorly, the players will, as players tend to, get upset.

Koo Rehtorb
2016-07-27, 02:23 PM
My advice is to not get too attached to it. Give them the opportunity to cause problems, but if they don't then let it go. Don't force it.

MintyNinja
2016-07-27, 02:39 PM
Do you have a set number of keys? Awesome. In either case, come up with major catastrophic events that take place when each key is turned. The Elven Sword might unlock a devastating plague that was kept dormant/defeated underneath a great forest somewhere. A trident might unlock an unending typhoon season. Just look at a few end of the world movies and come up with stuff that seems pretty epic in size.

Then, while these natural disasters are happening, have the news hit the players a bit later, so that they can't link the weapons and the cult to the natural disasters. A one by one unlocking will also ease the players into a worser world, which can build up to end of the world stuff.

In order to get the one thing they have but don't want to give, I might need more information. Do they carry it around in the open? Is it stuffed away in a bag of holding? Does the cult know they have it? In any case, the trick here is to buy it from them. Set up a wealthy merchant or collector who owes the cult some favor and have him/her put out feelers and rumors that someone wants that particular item. Assign a numerical value to it and your players might just bite the bait. The other alternative is that they get paranoid and start doing research on it, and that can be used as bread crumb clues to figuring out the truth.

A very important part in all this is that the Cult have an adversary already, this tyrannical ruler of yours. It's very important that you don't try to make him seem sympathetic. Let him be irrational, cruel, and arrogant. Let him think that it's just him against this cult and it's agents, and even give him a twinge of evil if you want. It's okay if this is an Evil vs. Evil world ending problem. That just makes it all the better of a story.

Red Fel
2016-07-27, 02:44 PM
My advice is to not get too attached to it. Give them the opportunity to cause problems, but if they don't then let it go. Don't force it.

This.

If the plot only works if the PCs do X, come up with an idea of what might happen if the PCs fail to do X. I mean, you're the DM; are you seriously telling me that there is no way for this plot to happen unless the PCs do a specific thing, and there is nothing else to do if they refuse to do that thing? "Well, you didn't hand over the keys to Armageddon, so pack up your dice, game's over." They saved the world! Isn't that a thing?

I mean, if it boils down to the cult taking possession of all of these "keys" from the PCs, what's to stop the cult from simply trying to take them by force? Consider this.
The cult needs the "keys" to open the lock. The cult sent the PCs, for some reason, to collect them. If the PCs hand them over, done, move on with your apocalypse.
If the PCs refuse to hand over the keys, it's time to employ mercenaries to take them. If the mercenaries can get the keys from the PCs, done, move on with your apocalypse.
If the mercenaries fail, it's time to act directly. If the cult's direct forces can get the keys from the PCs, done, move on with your apocalypse.
If not, you still win. Why? Because the PCs are now aware that (1) these things they have are valuable, and (2) there is a cult after them. So what do PCs do in that case? Why, take the fight to the enemy, of course! Let the cult lure the vengeful PCs in, so that the PCs are the ones who ultimately trigger the apocalypse. Done, move on with your apocalypse.
Or, you could just, I dunno, have a plot that doesn't require the PCs to do a specific thing before you - as the DM and puppeteer of the freaking universe - are allowed to trigger the apocalypse.

Flexibility, chief. Try yoga.

MonkeySage
2016-07-27, 02:56 PM
The dagger they have is currently collecting dust in a bag of holding. I'm not sure if they know it's important, but none of them have used it.

They left behind a nation a month ago that at least one of them seemed to care about; a tribal realm ruled by a class of seiğr. One of their friends was a member of this ruling class, a 9 year old seiğr in training.

I've made it no secret that the emperor has eyes in this realm. What if I gave hint of some event such like a massacre in that realm?

Thinker
2016-07-27, 02:58 PM
Don't force your players into anything. Allow other groups to collect keys - bandits, mercenaries, merchants, cult members directly. If the players do happen to get some keys, have them procured from the party via bandits, mercenaries, merchants, cult members, etc. Maybe the players decide that they don't want to pursue one of the keys, but they're in the area of one of them anyway, have the players encounter someone else on the way to get the key or on the way back from it. Create effects from the keys falling into the hands of the cult. The disasters idea is a great one.

Maybe create an opportunity for the players to help depose the emperor (who happens to have one of the keys in his treasury, which goes missing in the chaos). It doesn't have to be the players' fault, but it can be successful because they didn't do enough or because they did too much.

Mister Tom
2016-07-27, 03:50 PM
You can probably drop hints of what is to come that are obvious in hindsight - the precursor disasters ( great idea!) can be blamed on any number of things by any number of people. Firebrand preachers and retired adventurers running the inn for example. Don't make the most obviously kooky and insane NPC spout on the truth though, that's too cliched. Or if you do, make their insane ramblings a tiny part of the overall picture.

Once (if) the PCs have figured out what's going on, trick them again. You can't make them bring about the apocalypse, but you can give them the opportunity to inadvertently trigger it by a pilling innocent blood in the right place while trying to prevent it. The final panel of strip361 might inspire you.

And as mentioned above, have some backup plot directions in case they inadvertently leave reality intact.

erikun
2016-07-27, 10:14 PM
If the weapons prevent disasters, then having the cult engage in a ritual which destroys each one to bring about the apocalypse would make it fairly clear in retrospect.

Another option: if the "keys" don't need to be involved in the ritual, but simply present, then the PCs don't need to hand them over. Heck, they don't even need to be working with the cult at the time. They just need to be present with all the weapons.


Other than that? Don't think of the plot as "PCs collect weapons and then hand them over to cause the apocalypse." Some advice I've heard is to phrase it as a motivation of a NPC character or group instead. "The cult wants the PCs to collect the weapons and hand them over." This makes a far clearer goal because it is NPC choices and actions, not relying on specific player choices and actions. Also, it's a bit easier to change if things go wrong - the NPC then steps in to help the PCs collect the weapons, or tries to take over and steal the weapons from the PCs.

Although looking at it this way, why would you want some hired group to hold onto your key artifacts for your cult's master plan? It seems like you need just a bit more planning here so the cult can acquire the weapons themselves. Perhaps they offer to buy any magic equipment the party finds in their dungeon runs, and/or offers to craft and enhance some custom magic equipment if the PC party does so?

Chaosvii7
2016-07-27, 10:29 PM
My personal preference on the End of the World scenario is to let it happen, at least partly, and then find a way to fix it or stop it before it goes too far, a la Final Fantasy 6. The main villain succeeds in becoming a demigod and causing a cataclysm that reshapes the world in his image. The main characters ultimately slay him, but he's a rare example of a villain who succeeds in his goal, but still ultimately loses - while I'm not so much a fan of inexplicable loss of control on a scale that ends stories, I can appreciate it as a plot device made in 1994 - thus allowing the world to be restored after the apocalypse ends.

Of course, that largely depends upon the villain being the one orchestrating the apocalypse. If you want it to fall squarely on the heroes' shoulders, then you should look to making it a very serious question of morality relative to each character that forces them to choose the one or the many in as many uncomfortable ways as possible. I think it's good to make players have at least one decision they regret when faced with a plethora of choices, so the key would be to make it so that their dubious decisions turn out to be the key to saving them over one decision that essentially ruins the lives of many. Things like rousing the support of evil characters who, after it hits the fan, help the character out with what little pity or honesty they have to muster with regards to their dealings.

But ultimately, running the end of the world requires making sure it's done right at many levels. If it's something that could (or already is) common knowledge, then have the NPCs slowly vilify the PCs, or simply develop an "End is Nigh" attitude as the threat of annihilation looms ever closer. The common man might not have any idea what's going on, but the knowledge of the apocalypse would realistically be tied to the ever-increasing fame and repute of the people trying to stop (or intentionally cause) it. A world that comes apart at the seams should have small holes that gradually turn into tears, at least at a minimal or simulationist level.

Elvenoutrider
2016-07-28, 07:54 AM
Several adventure paths throughout the years have ended with a massive boss fight preceded by the statement :"You fools, you have not succeeded in stopping the ritual of summoning. We completed that hours ago. You merely stopped the ritual of binding..." cue the gates of hell opening.

Other ideas - a wealthy benefactor npc hires the party to steal an artifact from an evil wizard - turns out these two were business partners after the same end but the npc hiring the party decided he preferred a one man show. When the party shows up after the adventure to collect their treasure, have the npc stage an ambush, thank them for helping him take back the artifact, monologue a bit and leave behind their payment as a joke. Pretty sure this was a scene in a 3.5 elder evils adventure path.

Villain finds the location of one artifact but he cannot enter because of wards that prevent evil things from entering. He realizes he cannot enter but he finds some way to make it look like he has. The pcs crash the dungeon, beat all the defenses expecting to find him at the end, but find only an empty room, his lieutenants enter in behind the pcs triggering the boss fight. Have a disarm specialist take the artifact from a pc and word of recall away, or have them use a high level save or suck spell and have one guy leave with the artifact before they can respond.

Add a noble house to the game that aren't evil but have them act really pretentious and talk down to the pcs the whole time.; Maybe have them beat the pcs to a goal or two and upstage them, start gossip about them in their hometown. then have a war break out between the two kingdoms. Have the pcs end up alligned against them on the battlefield and give them a small strike force to raid those noble's castle while they are understaffed. Watch your players go crazy destroying the place, looting, defacing property, defecating on their beds, etc. Problem is the castle is built over a (insert evil thing here). This noble house has been defending that location for centuries to keep the forces of evil from it. The corruption in the area while having few obvious effects, has basically infected their psyches and just made them unpleasant but not necessarily evil people. By raiding the keep and breaking things, the pcs destroyed the wards allowing the (evil thing) to be released.

I can come up with more later. Hope these helped.

Hunter Noventa
2016-07-29, 12:25 PM
One option is to invoke a variant of 'Heads I win, Tails you Lose'. The party hands over the artifact? Welp you gave them one of the keys to the apocalypse. They don't hand it over? It was actually a false lead, the cultist was wrong, and the cult gets the actual key through other means.

sktarq
2016-07-29, 12:45 PM
Keys to running the end of the world.

A: Don't bluff-it is the end of the world. Break stuff, the players and NPC friends should not come through unscathed. Nor if the PC's do nothing should the Apocalypse take a rain check.

B: Don't assume PC victory. Set up the option of Heroic Defeat early and often. This may be the end of the campaign so TPK is a real option. Make sure tthe PC's loose a few battles so that the seriousness and consequences are clear.

C: What if the PC's don't fight it or even help the Cult? What does the day after look like. And can it be reversed?

D: model the society failing. Shops closed, Riots as outlying farmers horde food in fear of dark times.