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Jomo
2016-10-14, 07:43 PM
I’m a new DM starting to plan a campaign about slaves who join a resistance movement to fight for their freedom. If the game makes it to high levels, they’ll be able to conquer their kingdom and ban slavery if they choose to do, but deal with secret societies who smuggle in monsters and magic items to overthrow them.

I’d like the society to feel a little realistic, so I don’t want the slavemasters to be sorcerors with skull masks commanding armies of zombies and topless women, but I also want them to be a formidable threat to an adventuring party. How can I flesh out the society so it feels real? And how would the slavery angle affect gameplay? If a group of slaves are on a mission to steal a slavemaster’s valuables, they’re not likely to encounter so many goblins and werebears. Would it be difficult to make adventures suited to characters’ skill level? Would it be difficult to purchase pre-made adventures that can be adapted them to this situation?

I’m thinking the setting will be a mountainous iron mining area with a rapidly rising population and some pollution, near a fjord where the iron will be shipped to other areas. The technology level resembles the Iron Age, but the wildlife resembles the Ice Age. The slaves start out belonging to a wealthy knight and retired soldier named Mr. Bloodgore, who wants to become a baron.

Maybe the players can start out as gladiators in a freshly built arena, fighting wild animals like bears, mammoths, and aurochs, and then immediately meet members of an underground slave resistance. I think that gladiator would be the most logical job for an adventurer’s skill set, but I wonder if it might be cliché, so I’m open to other ideas.

I also have thoughts about the first villain the party will fight, their owner. I’m just beginning research about lordships. I want the owner of the adventuring party to be a wealthy knight named Bloodgore trying to impress the king in order to be made a baron, as the king has recently split the mining region off into a new duchy with several new lords. Is that something that’s plausible enough? Does that make sense? I think he’s partially motivated by liking the sound of Baron Bloodgore. He is also allied with the local bishop, who is a high-level cleric.

Here are my thoughts for early adventures in the campaign, so I'd like some thoughts on fleshing them out.
• The first gladiator fight in the new arena
• Rescuing slaves and/or prisoners from a dungeon.
• Smuggling people overseas to a safe island, but possibly being interrupted by pirates
• Stealing something very valuable from the Bloodgore family crypt
• Espionage in disguise and political intrigue
• Exploring ruins of an ancient civilization. I’m thinking most slaves are descendents of a very powerful Bronze Age civilization that collapsed, but I’m not sure how to make this work, since they’ll be from diverse races.
• Possibly helping a rival of Bloodgore become baron.

It’s a 5th edition campaign. My first foray into 5th edition.

Friv
2016-10-14, 09:15 PM
So, the first question is - are these people who have been slaves their whole lives, dreaming of freedom, or people who have been enslaved and want to be free, or some mixture? And, in fact, does this country mainly practice chattel slavery, in which a class of people are born into slavery, as are their children and so on, or is it a style in which many slaves are convicted criminals, captured foreigners, and those with heavy debts? The latter gives you a much wider array of character backgrounds, but the former might be more visceral.

If you're worried about the arena being too cliché, and that is a valid concern, go a different route. The players are slaves imported by Sir Bloodgore (more on this later) to work in the iron mines. Mining is a nasty, brutal job, and if magic is rare or expensive a constant supply of slaves is a much better way to do things. Those players who are barbarians, fighters, monks, rangers, or rogues are straight-up miners. Bards, clerics, druids, sorcerers, warlocks or wizards are educated slaves who have been allowed to learn magic, but whose spell components are strictly regulated; they're there to make the mining easier so that fewer resources are lost.

The first session involves fighting a couple underground critters, getting to know some fellow slaves, getting to hate the overseers and a brief meeting with Sir Bloodgore, and then someone accidentally breaks into a goblin tunnel, all hell breaks loose, and some of the slaves make a break for it. The next session is about being on the run, until the group hooks up with the resistance, who heard about what happened and sent people to recruit the survivors. Then you've got your anti-knight missions.

For variety, here are some possible missions other than those you suggested:
*) Delving into hidden places to find magic items to help the rebellion, since you can't exactly go into town to get them. You have to go into the most dangerous and nasty tombs and dungeons; the rest are covered.
*) Negotiations with the so-called savage races on the edges of the territory; maybe you can find common cause with an orcish tribe or goblin warband.
*) Trouble with wandering monsters, since the resistance's bases have to be on the borderlands; a single powerful beast or small band of dangerous creatures moves into the area, making life difficult.

Finally, unless you've got a really easygoing group of players, "Sir Bloodgore" is going to be a hard name to sell. It's just really... on point.

Mitth'raw'nuruo
2016-10-14, 09:39 PM
I’m a new DM starting to plan a campaign about slaves who join a resistance movement to fight for their freedom. If the game makes it to high levels, they’ll be able to conquer their kingdom and ban slavery if they choose to do, but deal with secret societies who smuggle in monsters and magic items to overthrow them.

I’d like the society to feel a little realistic, so I don’t want the slavemasters to be sorcerors with skull masks commanding armies of zombies and topless women, but I also want them to be a formidable threat to an adventuring party. How can I flesh out the society so it feels real? And how would the slavery angle affect gameplay? If a group of slaves are on a mission to steal a slavemaster’s valuables, they’re not likely to encounter so many goblins and werebears. Would it be difficult to make adventures suited to characters’ skill level? Would it be difficult to purchase pre-made adventures that can be adapted them to this situation?

I’m thinking the setting will be a mountainous iron mining area with a rapidly rising population and some pollution, near a fjord where the iron will be shipped to other areas. The technology level resembles the Iron Age, but the wildlife resembles the Ice Age. The slaves start out belonging to a wealthy knight and retired soldier named Mr. Bloodgore, who wants to become a baron.

Maybe the players can start out as gladiators in a freshly built arena, fighting wild animals like bears, mammoths, and aurochs, and then immediately meet members of an underground slave resistance. I think that gladiator would be the most logical job for an adventurer’s skill set, but I wonder if it might be cliché, so I’m open to other ideas.

I also have thoughts about the first villain the party will fight, their owner. I’m just beginning research about lordships. I want the owner of the adventuring party to be a wealthy knight named Bloodgore trying to impress the king in order to be made a baron, as the king has recently split the mining region off into a new duchy with several new lords. Is that something that’s plausible enough? Does that make sense? I think he’s partially motivated by liking the sound of Baron Bloodgore. He is also allied with the local bishop, who is a high-level cleric.

Here are my thoughts for early adventures in the campaign, so I'd like some thoughts on fleshing them out.
• The first gladiator fight in the new arena
• Rescuing slaves and/or prisoners from a dungeon.
• Smuggling people overseas to a safe island, but possibly being interrupted by pirates
• Stealing something very valuable from the Bloodgore family crypt
• Espionage in disguise and political intrigue
• Exploring ruins of an ancient civilization. I’m thinking most slaves are descendents of a very powerful Bronze Age civilization that collapsed, but I’m not sure how to make this work, since they’ll be from diverse races.
• Possibly helping a rival of Bloodgore become baron.

It’s a 5th edition campaign. My first foray into 5th edition.

Firstly, interesting idea.

Secondly, it would be wrong of anyone to support a slave uprising. Doing so is always a death sentence. To be more clear, the sentence is not death, the sentence is some horrible way of dying, - partial handing, then being cut down & gutted as you still live, then your inside parts being slowly burned, crucifixion.

Thirdly, Slaves are not considered disposable, in any society, they cost money, usually lots of it.Even if their job is to fight in the pits, they were not simply thrown it, but attended training for their job.

Fourth, Some societies (Rome) would collect them like Pokemon. These societies could be very task specific. Aemilianus opens the door to the house. He does not take your cloak. Ahenobarbus takes your cloak. Aemilianus sole job, is to open the door. Laurentnus pours your wine, but Rufus brings it from the cellar.

Fifth, Slaves have historically been in all parts of society, not just simple manual labor. Greek Slaves educated all Roman children. A slave rode on the chariot whispering to the greatest roman military victors "Memento mori" (translation "valar morghulis"). They managed their master's money. They raised his children. They ran his estates, both near & far. They served as political & military advisers. This was equally true throughout Chinese & mogul history. The western world now views slavery as bad, that is a modern, western political notion, that is without historical context. This is important to remember, slavery should not be considered, per se evil


Only a barbarian, fighter or warlock (making packs with an evil great power would almost certainly be verboten, & forced fighting would be the best punishment such a person could receive need be fighting in a pit). In addition, where any other slave might earn their freedom, and perhaps citizenship, a slave forced into the pits as punishment would likely have other legal restrictions (see Roman Slavery (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_ancient_Rome#Servus_publicus) ) See also, hard manual labor.

Bards fit in as entertainers, although even among free men, Roman considered theater the lowest form of life. Better to be a beggar, not that they did not often attend. However orator was greatly praised, as it was in Roman. China has somewhat higher views on entertainment.

Clerics, Druids, & monks all fit in well as advisers, healers, religious observers. One does not want the gods angry because you forgot that goat.

Monks/rogues also make good body guards in cities, where weapons & offensive magic are forbidden.

Rangers/druids/rogues: Livestock/groundskeepers, huntsmen

Wizards. Educators, advisers, managers.

Keep in mind, a slave does not pick his job (what he does for the master), nor does the master have to be evil. the role playing may be far easier if he is, but more interesting if he shows a genuine concern for his property.





https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_ancient_Rome#Servus_publicus

Jomo
2016-10-15, 12:23 AM
Finally, unless you've got a really easygoing group of players, "Sir Bloodgore" is going to be a hard name to sell. It's just really... on point.
Noted. I was going with te name Bloodgore is actually a bit of a joke. Bloodgore does not actually come across as a particularly threatening guy. His land is a gore on the Blood River, the Blood River is named such because it's reddish with all the iron. Thus his land is named Bloodgore, and he's Mr. Bloodgore. I haven't picked out a first name yet. Maybe he's Sir Bernard of Bloodgore. Over some wine, someone suggested that Bloodgore would be a great name for an arena. Bloodgore thought that would be great branding, and he really pushed the idea with the higher nobility to get a loan, because he's the sort who'd milk every possible edge he can think of no matter how slight. That said, I'm still in the brainstorming process.

I want to have a mixture of people who were born free and people who were born slaves, and let the characters decide. I haven't decided which form will be more common in this country. On the one hand, if I go with chattel slavery with people who were enslaved their whole lives, it is more visceral as Friv said, and it would be easier to incorporate my idea for slaves to all be descended from an ancient empire. On the other hand, slaves as prisoners of war and other foreigners matches the medieval European model, and gives players opportunities for more diverse backstories.

I like the ideas of how to work the angle with them in the mines, and you both have stellar suggestions for how to go about it, so I'll probably drop the arena. If I do go the arena route, I think it will involve the slavemaster claiming they'll earn their freedom and then going back on his word. I want the free people in this country to be kind to most of their fellow free people and unkind to most slaves.

Mitth'raw'nuruo gave me some things to think about. I knew that slaves have been much more than chattel in many societies, but wasn't aware of their roles as educated and influential people. think some characters can work with that angle with some NPC, but I want the player characters to start at the bottom of society. I was definitely planning to have some NPC slaves refuse to fight, and some former slaves becoming slaveowners themselves. I'm fully aware that slavery used to be widely supported almost everywhere, but I can do that without directly copying modern western culture.

Satinavian
2016-10-15, 12:46 AM
Mining was usually a hard and dangerous job with an early death. In Roman times the slaves that were sent to mines tended to be notorious troublemakers or slaves that had committed serious crimes as slaves or other people you woudn't trust to have around in cities or so.

Now, when your goal is a slave uprising campaign, a place where notorious troublemakers get sent to is a pretty good start. Usually mines will also have harsher oversight and less cooperative slaves so lots of the more iconic slave treatment fits there.

But minor slaves also have nearly the least social status of any slaves. After the revolt starts, quite many other slaves would see them as lower class and likely criminal scum that might endanger the position of better off slaves. Whenever slave uprisings were put down, the situation got worse for all slaves and that would be well known.

Jomo
2016-10-15, 12:54 AM
Mining was usually a hard and dangerous job with an early death. In Roman times the slaves that were sent to mines tended to be notorious troublemakers or slaves that had committed serious crimes as slaves or other people you woudn't trust to have around in cities or so.

Now, when your goal is a slave uprising campaign, a place where notorious troublemakers get sent to is a pretty good start. Usually mines will also have harsher oversight and less cooperative slaves so lots of the more iconic slave treatment fits there.

But minor slaves also have nearly the least social status of any slaves. After the revolt starts, quite many other slaves would see them as lower class and likely criminal scum that might endanger the position of better off slaves. Whenever slave uprisings were put down, the situation got worse for all slaves and that would be well known.
That's a very good point. That would make the mines a good place to start the campaign. I was also hoping to have the players try to recruit a a high-level sorceror or druid or something, and she'd flatly refuse because she finally have masters who give her a cushy place to sleep and work that's not too difficult, and she will not risk this to cause trouble.

Mitth'raw'nuruo
2016-10-15, 11:03 AM
China also & the Mongolian Empire (once they started taking over much of China), also had very educated slaves in many high positions, however even with the very goodHistory of China Podcast (https://thehistoryofchina.wordpress.com/), I can not claim the education (due to my own cultural interests), that so completely sucked me in as The History of Rome (http://thehistoryofrome.typepad.com/the_history_of_rome/2007/07/index.html). Thus I can not speak so well to it, but I've gotten the impression that it was much like Rome.

Interesting Chinese military Tidbit. Have a city you can never, ever take due to fortifications. Dam the River. Below them.

Jomo
2016-10-15, 02:21 PM
That is interesting. So a wizard character can fit right in if I play it right.

I'm wondering if I can work in the idea that there was once a large, egalitarian nation that the slaves are descended from, while still having the slaves be diverse in race and nationality. I'd like this backstory so the characters can go into the ancient tunnels of their ancestors and find their magic items and things.

And I'd like the resistance to be a secret society of slaves and former slaves. Any thoughts on how to flesh that out?

NRSASD
2016-10-15, 03:10 PM
In response to the large, egalitarian nation origin concept: sure, that can work. But you need to answer a few questions first.
bab
1. Why did it fall? Was it external invaders, internal strife, calamity? What event(s) knocked the old ruling government so badly off its feet that it could not recover, yet kept enough of the original population around for the new rulers to have a convenient source of slaves?

Historically speaking, foreign invaders conquering the country was the most likely reason the locals were enslaved. However, a new religion, a civil war, or a dramatic shift in cultural values, could result in slavery too.

2. Who's in charge now? Answering the first question usually answers this one as well, but it's important to know. If the ruling class is foreign but the slaves are local, it'll be a lot easier to kick off a rebellion than if the reverse were true.

3. How much of the old nation survives in modern day society? Was the fall of the old nation complete, or are there bastions of equality lurking on the fringes? If the PCs do escape, do they want to kick off a revolt or make a run for the border? Even if the old society is completely gone and the ruling class was completely replaced, lots of ideas and customs might remain. For example, are humans and other humanoids still considered equals, or is one viewed as superior? All of these have impacts on how successful the revolt will be. If minotaurs are considered barely talking animals, a minotaur leading a revolt is likely to be deserted by his human compatriots in exchange for amnesty.


Another possible origin for slave PCs is the Janissary (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janissaries) concept. Janissaries were the elites of the Ottoman Turkish military, and they were originally Christian slaves. The Ottoman Turks usually acquired these slaves through a tax on their various Christian subjects or through slave traders, but the Janissaries were raised from a very young age to adore the Ottoman Empire. They trained relentlessly and were expected to be absolutely loyal to the Sultan, and in exchange they were given more rights than the average slave and a salary. The Ottoman Turkish Sultans trusted Janissaries more frequently than their native born Turkish troops, because if a Janissary were to kill the Sultan, that Janissary and any Janissary associated with him would be killed. If a Turkish soldier killed the Sultan, the Turkish army and the nobles were more likely to accept him as the new Sultan.

Another class of soldier slaves are the mamlukes (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mamluk).

Hope this helps!

Jomo
2016-10-15, 08:05 PM
1. Why did it fall? Was it external invaders, internal strife, calamity? What event(s) knocked the old ruling government so badly off its feet that it could not recover, yet kept enough of the original population around for the new rulers to have a convenient source of slaves?
[/quote/]
It fell at the hands of external invaders, but this was over 1000 years ago, so the invaders' descendants are are no longer foreigners. I'm thinking maybe they used a device that caused magic to be canceled out for over a century and then destroyed the old nation with stronger iron weapons and armor against this country's bronze weapons and armor. Also, I'm thinking they brought a new religion with them. Most of the slaves are animists but most of the ruling class worship gods.

[QUOTE=NRSASD;21304784]
2. Who's in charge now? Answering the first question usually answers this one as well, but it's important to know. If the ruling class is foreign but the slaves are local, it'll be a lot easier to kick off a rebellion than if the reverse were true.
The fallen nation is now several nations ruled mostly by descendants of the invaders. Most of them belong to a single church that is ruled by a matriarch and patriarch on the opposite corner of the continent. The ruling and middle classes are now mostly human. Gnomes and halflings are not represented among the lords. Dragonborn, Orcs, and Tieflings are not considered citizens. Ogres, Minotaurs, and Goblins are not considered people, but some people do illegally hire them in criminal enterprises. In the old nation, any of these races can be citizens.



3. How much of the old nation survives in modern day society? Was the fall of the old nation complete, or are there bastions of equality lurking on the fringes? If the PCs do escape, do they want to kick off a revolt or make a run for the border? Even if the old society is completely gone and the ruling class was completely replaced, lots of ideas and customs might remain. For example, are humans and other humanoids still considered equals, or is one viewed as superior? All of these have impacts on how successful the revolt will be. If minotaurs are considered barely talking animals, a minotaur leading a revolt is likely to be deserted by his human compatriots in exchange for amnesty.

It's pretty nearly complete, except that some rural people and slaves follow the old religion, most nations have a few halfling shires with no nobility and few slaves, but they still pay taxes to human and dwarven dukes who do oppress people. Several people in a few island countries off the continent oppose slavery and provide aid, and the people of the Tundra don't have any stratification in their society, but they weren't affected by the fallen nation to begin with.

Interesting information about slaves in other societies. I'll keep that in mind.

sengmeng
2016-10-15, 09:28 PM
Please, please, PLEASE make all the players name their characters 'Spartacus'

AnBe
2016-10-16, 10:39 PM
Perhaps after the players kill Sir Bloodgore, his high-level cleric ally could raise him from the dead? Then they might have to fight SIR BLOODGORE, VERSION 2.0!

Jomo
2016-10-17, 09:36 PM
Funny! :smalltongue: