Help Designing a Quest

[Draco_Lord]

So recently one of my players lost an eye in combat. Now normally that is easily fixed by paying someone to cast regeneration, but I've set up this world that the strongest humanoids in the world are around level 10, maybe 12 if they are really good, aka just below level 7 spells. On top of that this particular player eats this kind of thing up, and just having them regrow the eye instantly is not nearly as much fun, they love roleplaying out their characters suffering and such.

One of the players has access to a lot of divination spells, and used it to task their god for guidance on how to get the eye back, aka I got a free plot hook. Now I'm just stuck on trying to create the question.

My original idea was a fountain of regeneration, or maybe youth (arguably he will de-age back his eye), and go a bit cliche. I just am trying to think of ways to making finding it more interesting. The idea I was thinking about was having a cult town hiding it from the world, and having the party make their way there, only to be told it is fake, they would just have to investigate the town to expose it. But it seems a bit too standard boiler plate quest to me. Any ideas on how to spice it up a bit?

[Rerednaw]

Perhaps the leads for "the Eye" lead to:

A portal to the void/abyss/elder gods. Eye=Gate. Hurm, better close this first.

The closest eye replacement is via very friendly alchemist...ahem...necromancer. Who will gladly begin work on crafting one...for a small fee and a few extra "parts" he needs dug up from the nearby cemetary...which for some reason he's been banned from. And of course the cemetary is rumored to be haunted, which is just local superstition...or is it?

Find a magic eye which looks like a gem...only it is a crystallized / magic transmuted real eye...that happens to belong to a very evil very powerful creature which is currently neutered due to being maimed and having his power fused into it. And now he wants it back. More plot points if he plays the cliched helpful cripple npc sage who the party finds as part of their hunt for eye / healing and he offers several clues and tips that the party pieces together and then raids a rival villain's keep/dungeon to recover the eye...and then turn over to the sage so he can vette/verify that it is indeed the Eye of Macguffin. Of course he sure seems real eager to get his hands back on it for some reason.

[Draco_Lord]

Perhaps the leads for "the Eye" lead to:

A portal to the void/abyss/elder gods. Eye=Gate. Hurm, better close this first.

The closest eye replacement is via very friendly alchemist...ahem...necromancer. Who will gladly begin work on crafting one...for a small fee and a few extra "parts" he needs dug up from the nearby cemetary...which for some reason he's been banned from. And of course the cemetary is rumored to be haunted, which is just local superstition...or is it?

Find a magic eye which looks like a gem...only it is a crystallized / magic transmuted real eye...that happens to belong to a very evil very powerful creature which is currently neutered due to being maimed and having his power fused into it. And now he wants it back. More plot points if he plays the cliched helpful cripple npc sage who the party finds as part of their hunt for eye / healing and he offers several clues and tips that the party pieces together and then raids a rival villain's keep/dungeon to recover the eye...and then turn over to the sage so he can vette/verify that it is indeed the Eye of Macguffin. Of course he sure seems real eager to get his hands back on it for some reason.

The Evil Eye thing is actually very interesting. The player wanted to play a bit more of an jerk, and them getting pushed that direction wouldn't hurt the game. The only question I have is how can I justify their God, who does not really want to see their oracle harmed, putting them on the path to this eye.

[ksbsnowowl]

Perfect way to introduce The Eye of Vecna.

[Draco_Lord]

http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/base-classes/oracle/archetypes/paizo-oracle-archetypes/prophet-oracle-archetype/

Hmm... so they are using this archtype to get their hands on their spells. Is it mean to make it not the gods talking to them, but just the general universe giving out objective truths? They just think it is their god?

[Rerednaw]

The Evil Eye thing is actually very interesting. The player wanted to play a bit more of an jerk, and them getting pushed that direction wouldn't hurt the game. The only question I have is how can I justify their God, who does not really want to see their oracle harmed, putting them on the path to this eye.

Their God? Is he playing some kind of Chosen One? IDK the theological aspects of your world but most gods IME (pick one or more of):

Don't do stuff for free, either from selfishness (a.k.a. Forgotten Realms) or because this is all part of a test.

Well since you are the Chosen One you'll get the eye healed or replaced eventually but on the way there's this little matter of this little favor your god needs.

Or perhaps this Evil Eye can be made 'good' again after they defeat the original owner, it will be another quest.

Or the whole MacGuffin hunt is there to teach a few lessons about history (perhaps this bad guy serves an ancient enemy) and to prepare the PCs for what's to come.

Or maybe the original owner...isn't. Seems he stole it from someone else...who may or may not be good. If good after all this time he is now willing to give it up to someone who is worthy or serving his deity. Though if the PC is a jerk not so sure about that.

Etc...

[flappeercraft]

Maybe it could be something about searching for forgotten knowledge on some ancient ruins or maybe there is a wizard trying to develop a pseudo regeneration spell/ritual but he requires some unique component that you need to send your players looking for. Perhaps it could also be a quest finding a monster who has innate spellcasting and can cast 7th level+ spells such as an Elemental Weird (Assuming 3.5). I also second the idea of the Eye of Vecna as it could be an interesting quest.

[AlanBruce]

I am guessing the party isn't that high level? Then have the crippled PC and his companions come across a wandering merchant, traveling with his cart hiding who knows how many goods.

Amongst them, a well preserved eye in alchemical fluids, sealed in a jar.

Some relevant checks may indicate the merchant is in somewhat of a hurry and has not slept well for several days. Stress and maybe even fear in his voice as he offers whatever the party wants, along with the eye, which, under magical scrutiny, comes out as an odd non magical collection.

Have the merchant Bluff the party as needed, but make sure the eye is a perfect fit for the PC.

A few days later, at night, have the PC with the eye experience horrid nightmares about something big and scary killing people and having him wake up sweating cold.

It so happens that, upon arriving to town X, this one has been butchered by what survivors describe as a "beast unlike any that has walked the earth since or ever will again.""

Have this happen for several more nights until the party diviner realizes that the eye purchased from the merchant belongs to a Moon Beast (MM2, p. 149).

These aberrations leave a trinket behind, which, if memory serves right, can adopt any mundane form- an eye wouldn't be out of the question.

Now the Moon Beast wants it back and it will pursue the thief and destroy everything within its path until it gets his eye back... and kills whoever has it.

[Draco_Lord]

Their God? Is he playing some kind of Chosen One? IDK the theological aspects of your world but most gods IME (pick one or more of):

Don't do stuff for free, either from selfishness (a.k.a. Forgotten Realms) or because this is all part of a test.

Well since you are the Chosen One you'll get the eye healed or replaced eventually but on the way there's this little matter of this little favor your god needs.

Or perhaps this Evil Eye can be made 'good' again after they defeat the original owner, it will be another quest.

Or the whole MacGuffin hunt is there to teach a few lessons about history (perhaps this bad guy serves an ancient enemy) and to prepare the PCs for what's to come.

Or maybe the original owner...isn't. Seems he stole it from someone else...who may or may not be good. If good after all this time he is now willing to give it up to someone who is worthy or serving his deity. Though if the PC is a jerk not so sure about that.

Etc...

So I'm using the Greek Pantheon due to this being a custom setting and I wanted Gods I was familiar with. And the character is basically casting Divination to get information, and asked "What is the best way to get their eye back." So, best is a little subjective.

In this case their god is Zeus. So, I can see him just kind of being "Eh, go that way" and points at the closest magical eye.

[Lionheart2000]

testing my ability to post