Tips or suggestions on monsters and social encounters for my campaign

[Cullasdir]

Hey, first time posting so thanks for reading this. :smallsmile:

I'm making a campaign inspired from the DMG quest "The map to the Magic Forge" and as the title suggests I need some interesting monsters to encounter inside the forge. I also have some interesting NPCs that offer an effective way to deal with some of the challenges if the NPCs gets what they want.

To enter the forge the PCs need the magic key which happens to be the prized walking stick of the goblin king (Race is changeable if you think another suits this better.) To learn this the PCs will have to ask around the large city they will be in, and there are a few people who can tell them where the key is. They are; An evil Aristocrat who rules all the businesses, the Captain of the Guard who is an evil tyrant, a man who doesn't reveal his name in a shady tavern and Chel Birdadz, a wizard who lives in a tower to the east.

I'm DMing for people who prefer the social side of D&D so I'd like interesting propositions for the aid these NPCs can offer them. I think a highlight of the campaign would be infiltrating the goblin village, which they would do if they spoke to Chel Birdadz. Chel would Polymorph Object the PCs into goblins, so they could enter suspicious and experience goblin culture which puts them in an environment they're not usually in. They could then get the key in this way by joining up with a faction to gain the king's trust before using trickery to "borrow" the key, convince another goblin that he's stronger and deserves to rule and take advantage of an uprising, sneak in at night to steal it and whatever they can think of that is conceivable.

Once they have the key, they can go to the forge and open it up. Inside, I'd like there to be plenty of puzzles, traps, obstacles and magical gear! I'd also like them to face some interesting monsters for a party of ECL 6. They don't really optimize at all, our group is pretty bad when it comes to combat and they're just pure core classes. I think interactive puzzles are the best, something that requires thinking but also you really need to use your character in game.

So in summary, what do you think a good wizard would want for helping the adventurers (If anything), or the others mentioned? What would be some interesting monsters they could encounter for their level? I can probably have them be weakened by something if it would mean a funner encounter.

I haven't worked out entirely what the other NPCs would offer, but this group never likes to do things the way I plan so maybe I'm stretching too thin but I want multiple options.
Thanks!

[Geddy2112]

I like that you have planned out several different NPC's and ways to find the information, as well as requirements to get the information.


I think a highlight of the campaign would be infiltrating the goblin village, which they would do if they spoke to Chel Birdadz. Chel would Polymorph Object the PCs into goblins, so they could enter suspicious and experience goblin culture which puts them in an environment they're not usually in. They could then get the key in this way by joining up with a faction to gain the king's trust before using trickery to "borrow" the key, convince another goblin that he's stronger and deserves to rule and take advantage of an uprising, sneak in at night to steal it and whatever they can think of that is conceivable.
This is a very specific set of events-the players have a LOT of options and this is one of dozens if not hundreds of paths that are different than this. I am glad you have this planned out, and certainly the wizard can offer this plan and their knowledge of the goblins. However, the players might not even talk to the wizard, or tell him this plan is stupid, or ask for other help, or simply shoot the breeze and not care about anything the wizard has to say about the goblins.



Once they have the key, they can go to the forge and open it up. Inside, I'd like there to be plenty of puzzles, traps, obstacles and magical gear! I'd also like them to face some interesting monsters for a party of ECL 6. They don't really optimize at all, our group is pretty bad when it comes to combat and they're just pure core classes. I think interactive puzzles are the best, something that requires thinking but also you really need to use your character in game.
Sandbag your monsters by throwing encounters a bit lower than ECL6, or don't play ECL6 monsters to their full potential. Likewise, since they like social stuff, make sure EVERY encounter can end with a nonlethal solution. Combat only breaks out when every other option has been exhausted, or when one side has determined the line for violence has been crossed. However, even if combat breaks out it does not have to mean killing-a wolfpack might attack the party out of hunger, but will run away if they realize it is too dangerous.



So in summary, what do you think a good wizard would want for helping the adventurers (If anything), or the others mentioned? What would be some interesting monsters they could encounter for their level? I can probably have them be weakened by something if it would mean a funner encounter.
A wizard who spends all their time at home is going to want for rare and exotic spell ingredients, the kind you have to pay money form. THey might also want a rare book, spell, other item. It could be personal-maybe they admire a townsperson but are too reclusive and shy to say what they feel, so playing matchmaker could get their aid. Maybe their child has been missing far away and they can't leave to go look for them because reasons.

I always like the infernal bargain-an evil outsider appears and offers power in return for something from the players. Any good devil works here, but a succbus is another great choice. Fey in the forest might not have malicious intent, but they could attempt to steal from the party or lead them astray. Any intelligent creature that has larger goals than kill things is a good social encounter.

[ComaVision]

A magic forge definitely has to end with a Construct encounter. You can always make it into a moral encounter by giving them the option of controlling the Construct BUT it's powered by imprisoned souls that can't rest unless the Construct is destroyed.

[WbtE]

I think the first question to ask is, "Why do the player characters want to go into the forge?" That would explain more about why they would seek out the key.

It sounds a bit like you want Chel Birdadz (or an agent of the wizard) to approach the player characters and get them to go into the goblin lair for mutually beneficial reasons. A minimal reason might be that the key grants the goblin king sway over the goblinoid tribes of the region, creating a threat that Birdadz finds unpalatable. The party's reward? Well, they have the key so they can go help themselves to whatever they might find in the forge. :smallcool:

[Cullasdir]

I like that you have planned out several different NPC's and ways to find the information, as well as requirements to get the information.

This is a very specific set of events-the players have a LOT of options and this is one of dozens if not hundreds of paths that are different than this. I am glad you have this planned out, and certainly the wizard can offer this plan and their knowledge of the goblins. However, the players might not even talk to the wizard, or tell him this plan is stupid, or ask for other help, or simply shoot the breeze and not care about anything the wizard has to say about the goblins.


Sandbag your monsters by throwing encounters a bit lower than ECL6, or don't play ECL6 monsters to their full potential. Likewise, since they like social stuff, make sure EVERY encounter can end with a nonlethal solution. Combat only breaks out when every other option has been exhausted, or when one side has determined the line for violence has been crossed. However, even if combat breaks out it does not have to mean killing-a wolfpack might attack the party out of hunger, but will run away if they realize it is too dangerous.


A wizard who spends all their time at home is going to want for rare and exotic spell ingredients, the kind you have to pay money form. THey might also want a rare book, spell, other item. It could be personal-maybe they admire a townsperson but are too reclusive and shy to say what they feel, so playing matchmaker could get their aid. Maybe their child has been missing far away and they can't leave to go look for them because reasons.

I always like the infernal bargain-an evil outsider appears and offers power in return for something from the players. Any good devil works here, but a succbus is another great choice. Fey in the forest might not have malicious intent, but they could attempt to steal from the party or lead them astray. Any intelligent creature that has larger goals than kill things is a good social encounter.

Good points and ideas! I'll definitely use the fey, and maybe if the PCs decide not to use the wizard's plan they can encounter a creature that despises humanoids and goblinoids. Wworking with the PCs would stop people from coming into it's territory so their interests would align. As for why the wizard would offer help to the PCs I think I'll use WbtE's idea of the goblinoid tribes. It fits great. Thanks!


A magic forge definitely has to end with a Construct encounter. You can always make it into a moral encounter by giving them the option of controlling the Construct BUT it's powered by imprisoned souls that can't rest unless the Construct is destroyed.

This sounds great, maybe I could make a minotaur construct, make the forge like a labyrinth and make it so if they reach the center they can stop and control it. I'm not too sure how constructs work but I'll look into them.


I think the first question to ask is, "Why do the player characters want to go into the forge?" That would explain more about why they would seek out the key.

It sounds a bit like you want Chel Birdadz (or an agent of the wizard) to approach the player characters and get them to go into the goblin lair for mutually beneficial reasons. A minimal reason might be that the key grants the goblin king sway over the goblinoid tribes of the region, creating a threat that Birdadz finds unpalatable. The party's reward? Well, they have the key so they can go help themselves to whatever they might find in the forge. :smallcool:

That's a good idea, I have the lair set two hours from the city they would be visiting named Carran. In addition to connecting the party to Birdadz, your idea would provide a reason for the evil powers of the city to offer any aid at all, seeing as they're not self destructive. Of course they'd still try to gain something else out of the an agreement because they're greedy.

Thanks for your help guys! :smallsmile: Seems like the PCs and NPCs have a reason to cooperate, monsters they can defeat with social skills and a final moral encounter. Puzzles and traps will probably be fairly easy.