Plot bunny

[cullynthedwarf]

So I'm was watching this YouTube guy and he had a spell combo of how to take over the body of a Red Dragon

https://youtu.be/z06H9fMcEwU
If you are interested.

So I had this plot idea, the wizard is a human and does this trick on a Wyrmling dragon (color irrelevant) he then spends the next millennia as this dragon until (while moving his hoard for 'reasons') the wizard is forced to trade places back with the Wyrmling soul. It's been a thousand years his natural body has died ages ago but as a competent wizard he has a clone spell set up. He is cast back into the body of his 45y/o self and is now hunting for the Great Wyrm he was in-habiting.

Mean while this Wyrmling that has never really known life outside a magic jar has all the strength and power of an ancient dragon but none o the life experience. Arrogant he may be but even he knows he is out of his depth here. Through intermediaries hires the party (who may also have been hired by the wizard) to glean information about this strange new world he finds himself in.

This opens up a nature vs nurture argument of how/why this wizard did this and how his 1000 years as a 'evil' dragon have changed him. "He has worn the mask so long that he has become his role". On the other hand this Wyrmling soul who has had no one to interact with since he was not much more than an infant, still thinks of things in terms of his previous size. The kobolds who worship him now he still believes if he falters may eat him.

Who does the party help, running back and forth between these two?

[Unoriginal]

So I'm was watching this YouTube guy and he had a spell combo of how to take over the body of a Red Dragon

https://youtu.be/z06H9fMcEwU
If you are interested.

So I had this plot idea, the wizard is a human and does this trick on a Wyrmling dragon (color irrelevant) he then spends the next millennia as this dragon until (while moving his hoard for 'reasons') the wizard is forced to trade places back with the Wyrmling soul. It's been a thousand years his natural body has died ages ago but as a competent wizard he has a clone spell set up. He is cast back into the body of his 45y/o self and is now hunting for the Great Wyrm he was in-habiting.

Mean while this Wyrmling that has never really known life outside a magic jar has all the strength and power of an ancient dragon but none o the life experience. Arrogant he may be but even he knows he is out of his depth here. Through intermediaries hires the party (who may also have been hired by the wizard) to glean information about this strange new world he finds himself in.

This opens up a nature vs nurture argument of how/why this wizard did this and how his 1000 years as a 'evil' dragon have changed him. "He has worn the mask so long that he has become his role". On the other hand this Wyrmling soul who has had no one to interact with since he was not much more than an infant, still thinks of things in terms of his previous size. The kobolds who worship him now he still believes if he falters may eat him.

Who does the party help, running back and forth between these two?

The Wizard inflicted an I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream on the Wyrmling for 1000+ years, and stole most of the dragon's lifespan.

I don't know any reason why even evil PCs would tolerate the Wizard's continued existence. Because such a person can decide one of the PCs' bodies will make a great "powerful body I can snatch until I've secured a better one" at any moment, and he has proven to be too skilled at it to be given a chance to do it.



This opens up a nature vs nurture argument of how/why this wizard did this and how his 1000 years as a 'evil' dragon have changed him. "He has worn the mask so long that he has become his role".

I don't understand this part. The Wizard was already one of the evil alignments before he spent time in the Wyrmling's body, if stealing the body and imprisoning the soul was his plan. If it was not his plan, he certainly was one of the evil alignments when he decided to change his plan to keep the body, independently of anything dragon related.

[Kane0]

Yeah bodyhopping mages are rarely good people. I'd say about as likely to be good as necromancers that are fine with destroying souls or enchanters fine with reshaping any and every mind they come across.

[cullynthedwarf]

Yeah bodyhopping mages are rarely good people. I'd say about as likely to be good as necromancers that are fine with destroying souls or enchanters fine with reshaping any and every mind they come across.

I had meant this as an idea of "I did this with the best of intentions" wizard. "If I raised a (normally evil dragon here) it could grow up and not be evil." ( Maybe good is too far to push this put not evil is possible) Then over the years he has become as bad as what he once fought against.

Perhaps a story to regain his humanity? Or maybe it's the PCs and their dragon patron fighting against this terrible body hopping wizard, and every time the kill him they have to wonder "did we really get him this time?"

[Unoriginal]

I had meant this as an idea of "I did this with the best of intentions" wizard.

Someone who was on the road to Hell?



"If I raised a (normally evil dragon here) it could grow up and not be evil." ( Maybe good is too far to push this put not evil is possible) Then over the years he has become as bad as what he once fought against.

By what you said in the OP, he didn't even try to raise the dragon. He stole his body and stuck his soul in a jar. Did I get that wrong?



Perhaps a story to regain his humanity?

Evil wizard filled with remorse over several lifetimes of misdeeds, trying to seek redemption? Could be very interesting.



Or maybe it's the PCs and their dragon patron fighting against this terrible body hopping wizard, and every time the kill him they have to wonder "did we really get him this time?"

Well in that situation, seeking options for destroying or capturing the wizard's soul is likely to be the first thing everyone involved will do, since he already came back from the dead once.

In fact, the Dragon, once he realized he had his body back but that the wizard was still out here, could be sending his new (formerly the wizard's) servants' to get that kind of magic, either through items, spells or creatures, and this search could be what triggers different factions in the world to get nervous/curious (after all, when such a powerful entity seeks the way to deal with someone/something *permanently*, people take notice), and it could result in the PCs getting involved in the situation.

Ex: the PCs are talking with a knowledge broker, and one of the dragon's agents show up to find info on what the dragon wants, leading to the broker to hire the PCs to find the info needed.

[JonBeowulf]

There are some really good adventure seeds in here and I hope you're able to play it out. I don't have a lot more to offer than some serious props for pulling this together.


Someone who was on the road to Hell?
Great, now I gotta dig out my Chris Rea CD. :smallbiggrin: