Skyrim side-quest (Waking Nightmare) into a 5e session, help needed!

[Arkhios]

Hi! So, I'm currently neck deep in sh... I mean, running (yes, I definitely meant to say running!) a game using Skyrim (the video game) as the setup.

None of the players is or will be the dragonborn, but one of them is a sorcerer of draconic origin (but that's sort of unrelated). Whether the dragonborn will be a part of the campaign remains to be seen, but as of yet, there's no sign of such an individual. It's still up in the air how I will handle the vacuum if the dragonborn isn't around. One possibility is definitely that the players are somehow connected and share the burden of being the dragonborn. Another possibility is that the dragonborn isn't a factor at all, though the events still unfold more or less as one might expect. Or the dragonborn is simply an NPC (and I don't mean a DMPC that would hog all the spotlight!) at most equivalent to a sidekick to the party at critical moments.

The game will follow the foot steps of the video game, but has started from a slightly different premise. Honoring The Elder Scrolls' legacy, the player characters were involved in a prisoner sequence of sorts in a location other than Helgen (I'm not going to go into detail).

The players are just about to enter the ruins of Nightcaller Temple. They've got Erandur (Casimir) with them but he hasn't spilled the exact beans yet. Initially I had in mind that I'd use the quest from video game as is, but now I'm wondering whether I should just rebuild it somewhat. Since it's October and the time of Halloween all over the world, I'd like to emphasize horror themes a bit more. (Since the side-quest "Waking Nightmare (https://elderscrolls.fandom.com/wiki/Waking_Nightmare)" is already related with nightmares, I feel it's more than fitting). The quest is relatively simple, but the execution is a bit more difficult than I initially thought for more than just one character, so it would be great if someone were to lend a hand!

There are a total of 6 PC's, all of them at 2nd level: a Barbarian (nord Sailor), a Cleric (dunmer Acolyte), a Druid (argonian Hermit), a Fighter (orsimer Folk Hero Soldier), a Rogue (khajiit Charlatan), and a Sorcerer (imperial Noble). Likewise to honor The Elder Scrolls's legacy, each character has received a blessing related to their birthsigns (essentially boons, separate from feats or ability score increases).

Thanks in advance!

[Unoriginal]

Hi! So, I'm currently neck deep in sh... I mean, running (yes, I definitely meant to say running!) a game using Skyrim (the video game) as the setup.

None of the players is or will be the dragonborn, but one of them is a sorcerer of draconic origin (but that's sort of unrelated). Whether the dragonborn will be a part of the campaign remains to be seen, but as of yet, there's no sign of such an individual. It's still up in the air how I will handle the vacuum if the dragonborn isn't around. One possibility is definitely that the players are somehow connected and share the burden of being the dragonborn. Another possibility is that the dragonborn isn't a factor at all, though the events still unfold more or less as one might expect. Or the dragonborn is simply an NPC (and I don't mean a DMPC that would hog all the spotlight!) at most equivalent to a sidekick to the party at critical moments.

The game will follow the foot steps of the video game, but has started from a slightly different premise. Honoring The Elder Scrolls' legacy, the player characters were involved in a prisoner sequence of sorts in a location other than Helgen (I'm not going to go into detail).

The players are just about to enter the ruins of Nightcaller Temple. They've got Erandur (Casimir) with them but he hasn't spilled the exact beans yet. Initially I had in mind that I'd use the quest from video game as is, but now I'm wondering whether I should just rebuild it somewhat. Since it's October and the time of Halloween all over the world, I'd like to emphasize horror themes a bit more. (Since the side-quest "Waking Nightmare (https://elderscrolls.fandom.com/wiki/Waking_Nightmare)" is already related with nightmares, I feel it's more than fitting). The quest is relatively simple, but the execution is a bit more difficult than I initially thought for more than just one character, so it would be great if someone were to lend a hand!

There are a total of 6 PC's, all of them at 2nd level: a Barbarian (nord Sailor), a Cleric (dunmer Acolyte), a Druid (argonian Hermit), a Fighter (orsimer Folk Hero), a Rogue (khajiit Charlatan), and a Sorcerer (imperial Noble). Likewise to honor The Elder Scrolls's legacy, each character has received a blessing related to their birthsigns (essentially boons, separate from feats or ability score increases).

Thanks in advance!

Maybe you could make it so that the group has to travel through every member's nightmares before reaching the goal? Including the nightmare of the NPC accompanying them?

Off-session, you could ask all the players to write you a short (like between two and five sentences) summary of what would be a nightmare for their character. Then work to make a short but memorable encounter out of it.

Bonus idea: you can look at the various PCs' Bonds, and make them the solution to escape one of the nightmares. That is, if you're in PC A's nightmare, PC B's Bond let you out of it, but now you're in PC B's nightmare.

And you could also add a representation of a different PC's Flaw in the nightmare, as main antagonistic force.

So it's be PC A's Nightmare, with PC B's Bond as the way out and PC C's Flaw as the antagonist.

The NPC's nightmare, Flaw and Bond being thrown into the mix should keep things surprising.

[Arkhios]

Maybe you could make it so that the group has to travel through every member's nightmares before reaching the goal? Including the nightmare of the NPC accompanying them?

Off-session, you could ask all the players to write you a short (like between two and five sentences) summary of what would be a nightmare for their character. Then work to make a short but memorable encounter out of it.

Bonus idea: you can look at the various PCs' Bonds, and make them the solution to escape one of the nightmares. That is, if you're in PC A's nightmare, PC B's Bond let you out of it, but now you're in PC B's nightmare.

And you could also add a representation of a different PC's Flaw in the nightmare, as main antagonistic force.

So it's be PC A's Nightmare, with PC B's Bond as the way out and PC C's Flaw as the antagonist.

The NPC's nightmare, Flaw and Bond being thrown into the mix should keep things surprising.

That's a neat idea! Thanks a lot!

Although, now I need to ask all of them choose their background traits. Bummer. xD

[Amnestic]

I definitely agree that tying it into a character's own fears is a great idea.

An alternative would be to throw together a bunch of common and uncommon phobias - spiders, falling/heights, closed spaces, THE VOID, public speaking, clowns, that sorta stuff, all into one sequence of events, maybe as a combination skill challenge thing.

Although if you can turn public speaking into a combat encounter, that'd be pretty neat.

[Arkhios]

I definitely agree that tying it into a character's own fears is a great idea.

An alternative would be to throw together a bunch of common and uncommon phobias - spiders, falling/heights, closed spaces, THE VOID, public speaking, clowns, that sorta stuff, all into one sequence of events, maybe as a combination skill challenge thing.

I gave it some more thought and ultimately decided that I don't want to take the background traits into play. Unoriginal's suggestion was great, but I think I'll adjust it a bit. But only because I don't have much time (well, okay, a month, give or take, but my work takes a lot of my energy during day, and spare time is relatively scarce, and there are marital duties as well).

Instead, I think I'll just ask my players to come up with the greatest fear of their characters and also their greatest cause of joy or hope. Instead of other characters' background related bonds, I'd use their cause of joy or hope as the connection point from one's nightmare to another, and otherwise try to connect their nightmares with the Nightcaller Temple and the Waking Nightmare quest.


Although if you can turn public speaking into a combat encounter, that'd be pretty neat.

The mental image of two bards insulting each other on stage, both of them taking psychic damage until the other one quivers on the floor. I can't get it out of my head!

[Unoriginal]

The mental image of two bards insulting each other on stage, both of them taking psychic damage until the other one quivers on the floor. I can't get it out of my head!

That is a common (and awesome) mythological pattern.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9eWZCYuYR6s

Also see: flyting.

[Arkhios]

Also see: flyting.

True, good point.

[Arkhios]

Ok, I've laid out the request to my players; to tell me (in private) their character's greatest fear and greatest joy. For each PC, depending on how much time I have, there will be either one room or floor, related to each fear, and each joy will open the way from one room or floor to another; obviously only once, each.

[Arkhios]

Well, damn... First player threw quite a curve-ball. Their PC's (Cleric of Azura) worst nightmare is insomnia. No sleep, no visions from Azura. Their biggest joy, however, is to drink genuine sujamma.

How the heck can I make an interesting scene from this nightmare! :smallbiggrin:

At least the joy is easy to implement into just about any dream.

[Unoriginal]

Well, damn... First player threw quite a curve-ball. Their PC's (Cleric of Azura) worst nightmare is insomnia. No sleep, no visions from Azura. Their biggest joy, however, is to drink genuine sujamma.

How the heck can I make an interesting scene from this nightmare! :smallbiggrin:

At least the joy is easy to implement into just about any dream.

What I would do is:

When they take the greatest joy that gets them in this PC's nightmare, the PC arrives in some sort of grand temple to Azura, except the rest of the group and all the people who should be there (clergy, worshipers, visitors, even animals) are asleep and impossible to wake up.

Meanwhile, the rest of the group arrives in the same temple, except this time it's the PC who is asleep alongside everyone else.

The only way to communicate/see what is happening is to look at reflective surfaces, as all reflective surfaces instead reflect what is happening in the other layer of the nightmare.

Both layers are inhabited by some weird worm-like beings who are clearly eating the sleeping people, and fly-like beings who are laying their eggs into them. Despite that, both the PC and the group are feeling really tired and need to make saving throws to not fall asleep if they go by one minute without taking damage (even if it's just an 1-damage slap or the like).

The only way to get out of this two-layers nightmare is if the PC and the rest of the group use the greatest joy that gets them out of it at the same time.

[Imbalance]

Dungeons & Dragons cartoon episode #9: Quest of the Skeleton Warrior

[Arkhios]

What I would do is:

When they take the greatest joy that gets them in this PC's nightmare, the PC arrives in some sort of grand temple to Azura, except the rest of the group and all the people who should be there (clergy, worshipers, visitors, even animals) are asleep and impossible to wake up.

Meanwhile, the rest of the group arrives in the same temple, except this time it's the PC who is asleep alongside everyone else.

The only way to communicate/see what is happening is to look at reflective surfaces, as all reflective surfaces instead reflect what is happening in the other layer of the nightmare.

Both layers are inhabited by some weird worm-like beings who are clearly eating the sleeping people, and fly-like beings who are laying their eggs into them. Despite that, both the PC and the group are feeling really tired and need to make saving throws to not fall asleep if they go by one minute without taking damage (even if it's just an 1-damage slap or the like).

The only way to get out of this two-layers nightmare is if the PC and the rest of the group use the greatest joy that gets them out of it at the same time.
Nice! A few questions though...
1) What should the Dreamer be able to do? Are they actually asleep as well, forced to be a mere bystander while the rest of the group solves the puzzle? Or can they do something to wake up and end their nightmare, or should it be entirely up to the rest of the group?
2) Does the Dreamer see the rest of the group alongside the sleeping clergy, worshipers, visitors, etc. or is the Dreamer "alone" in their own dream?
3) Should the Dreamer see the nightmare creatures as well, or should they only be visible to the rest of the group, and seen only through the reflections?

As for the creatures themselves, maybe the flies' eggs could be something akin to slaad tadpoles, but instead of killing the host, they may become possessed by an alien entity (until cured). The worms could feed on the individuals' memories, which may cause madness if the individual fails their saving throw. While subject to the madness, the individual subtracts 1d4 from all Intelligence checks they make. The madness can be cured as normal, and once cured, the memories are returned as well.


Dungeons & Dragons cartoon episode #9: Quest of the Skeleton Warrior
... I had forgotten that series existed. Never watched the series, though. I'm not even sure if it ever aired in Finland. Tried watching it from youtube, but... yeaaah... the so-called quality hurts my brain! :smallbiggrin: Thanks for the suggestion though!

[Unoriginal]

Nice! A few questions though...
1) What should the Dreamer be able to do? Are they actually asleep as well, forced to be a mere bystander while the rest of the group solves the puzzle? Or can they do something to wake up and end their nightmare, or should it be entirely up to the rest of the group?

The PC is awake in their own layer, they can do everything the rest of the group can do (or at least try).

No one can escape unless both the PC and the rest of the group do what's needed to get out.



2) Does the Dreamer see the rest of the group alongside the sleeping clergy, worshipers, visitors, etc. or is the Dreamer "alone" in their own dream?

They see the rest of the group as sleeping, but like the restof the people those are just dream constructs.

One of the many nasty things about insomnia is that you're not alone because people are gone, you're alone becsuse they're here but unresponsive.



3) Should the Dreamer see the nightmare creatures as well, or should they only be visible to the rest of the group, and seen only through the reflections?


I think it would be more impactful if the nightmare creatures are visible for everyone.

Another of the nasty things about insomnia is that often, you do want to sleep, but you fear something terrible will happen if you do. The nightmare creatures are a rather in-your-face materialization of that fear.




... I had forgotten that series existed. Never watched the series, though. I'm not even sure if it ever aired in Finland. Tried watching it from youtube, but... yeaaah... the so-called quality hurts my brain! :smallbiggrin: Thanks for the suggestion though!

That show has a lot of good stuff, despite the budget and the self-appointed moral guardians of the time hindering it.

I wish it got a reboot from people who love both the show and the game

[Arkhios]

The PC is awake in their own layer, they can do everything the rest of the group can do (or at least try).

No one can escape unless both the PC and the rest of the group do what's needed to get out.

They see the rest of the group as sleeping, but like the restof the people those are just dream constructs.

One of the many nasty things about insomnia is that you're not alone because people are gone, you're alone becsuse they're here but unresponsive.
Gotcha.


I think it would be more impactful if the nightmare creatures are visible for everyone.

Another of the nasty things about insomnia is that often, you do want to sleep, but you fear something terrible will happen if you do. The nightmare creatures are a rather in-your-face materialization of that fear.

I'm beginning to feel they'd be like hashalaq quori, but ethereal, except "maybe" a lot weaker, considering the PC's are only at 2nd level. Ethereal, because they're effectively invisible to the blind eye, and only visible through reflections, and probably only partially affected by ...well... anything.

Anyway, since there are six PC's in the group and thus six fears more or less different from each other, I think I'll have to cut something out, or try to keep it relatively simple.

Two more players have shared their characters' fears and joys, and they are as follows:

1) Imperial Noble (Sorcerer): He's afraid that something would happen to his family (mom, dad, and three younger brothers), because they're in a "pickle" financially, due to some cousins mucking things up for their whole family. As a scion to a house that gained nobility through their military efforts, nothing would bring him more joy than to be able to restore his family's status in that regard.

2) Orsimer Soldier (Fighter): As a retired veteran, he's afraid that his farm - earned through blood, sweat, and tears in the service of the Empire - would get burned and the crops salted. Seeing his cottage burning would cause serious PTSD-symptoms, sending his mind racing back to the Great War against the elves. Nothing would bring him more joy than to be able to return to his farm and to live the rest of his days in peace and quiet (the whole situation with his farm is actually very much like in Rambo: Last Blood; having returned home, the locals didn't believe an orc would have a farm to their own name, and instead beat him up, falsely accusing him of a crime he didn't commit, and got sent to prison).

As for the ideas I have so far for the Fears a.k.a Nightmares:
1) I'm thinking of a scene in some sort of dark and dank prison, where the sorcerer's father and brothers are chained together by a rope, walking towards the gallows, while his mother is trying to get to her family while guards are holding her back. The sorcerer and the group are scattered in the raging mob, almost unable to move, when the nightmare begins.

2) The Fighter's nightmare begins with him and the group inside his cottage, which is about to burst into flames. There's a crowd of hooded figures in elvish armor and robes, outside the perimeter of the farm, shouting in what sounds like elvish, but is actually unintelligible mumbling. The figures are brandishing their weapons into the air, and some are preparing to toss their torches at the farm, while some are pulling carts loaded with sacks of salt, bundles of hay, and jugs of oil.

[Unoriginal]

As for the ideas I have so far for the Fears a.k.a Nightmares:
1) I'm thinking of a scene in some sort of dark and dank prison, where the sorcerer's father and brothers are chained together by a rope, walking towards the gallows, while his mother is trying to get to her family while guards are holding her back. The sorcerer and the group are scattered in the raging mob, almost unable to move, when the nightmare begins.

2) The Fighter's nightmare begins with him and the group inside his cottage, which is about to burst into flames. There's a crowd of hooded figures in elvish armor and robes, outside the perimeter of the farm, shouting in what sounds like elvish, but is actually unintelligible mumbling. The figures are brandishing their weapons into the air, and some are preparing to toss their torches at the farm, while some are pulling carts loaded with sacks of salt, bundles of hay, and jugs of oil.

Good ideas, but I think you could really take advantage of how the scenes are happening in dreams, and as such don't require consistency or anything but dream logic. You can go hyperbolic, symbolical, etc.

For examples:

1) The material possessions of the Sorcerer's family are being auctioned off while the group has to watch from the auction's audience seats, each item being bought for a pittance and taken away forever by faceless shadows in opulent clothes in big, grey carriages riding out in the horizon. After a few sentimental items, the auction moves to selling off the Sorcerer's family members outright.

2) The Fighter first realizes that he's back in his physical prime, wearing his military uniform, while his favorite superior officier from when he was in the army is doing a briefing to the squad. The rest of the group are also in uniforms. Officier tells them that they're going to go at night and remove some war squatter trying to claim Empire property. Routine mission, in and out in an hour max. The squad moves to do that, and it's immediately night and they're all ready to evict the squatter around the house. Officier tells them the orders are to claim all the animals and riches that may be in that place, as the squatter obviously stole them from the Empire. Then the attack starts, and now everyone has torches and bags of salts, and the officier tells to remember the orders: burn this farm and salt the earth, to make an example of that guy who dare claim to have earned it in service of the Empire. The non-group members of the soldier squads are now the Fighter's neighbors and the other people who persecuted him through his life. The farm is set ablaze, and CurrentAge!Fighter screams from inside it as his younger self watches.

[Arkhios]

Good ideas, but I think you could really take advantage of how the scenes are happening in dreams, and as such don't require consistency or anything but dream logic. You can go hyperbolic, symbolical, etc.

For examples:

1) The material possessions of the Sorcerer's family are being auctioned off while the group has to watch from the auction's audience seats, each item being bought for a pittance and taken away forever by faceless shadows in opulent clothes in big, grey carriages riding out in the horizon. After a few sentimental items, the auction moves to selling off the Sorcerer's family members outright.

2) The Fighter first realizes that he's back in his physical prime, wearing his military uniform, while his favorite superior officier from when he was in the army is doing a briefing to the squad. The rest of the group are also in uniforms. Officier tells them that they're going to go at night and remove some war squatter trying to claim Empire property. Routine mission, in and out in an hour max. The squad moves to do that, and it's immediately night and they're all ready to evict the squatter around the house. Officier tells them the orders are to claim all the animals and riches that may be in that place, as the squatter obviously stole them from the Empire. Then the attack starts, and now everyone has torches and bags of salts, and the officier tells to remember the orders: burn this farm and salt the earth, to make an example of that guy who dare claim to have earned it in service of the Empire. The non-group members of the soldier squads are now the Fighter's neighbors and the other people who persecuted him through his life. The farm is set ablaze, and CurrentAge!Fighter screams from inside it as his younger self watches.

All in all, your examples are much better than what I came up with, so thanks (again)!

1) I'm seeing this might be more of a social challenge, or maybe a fight with the auction staff (read: when all else fails, either myself as a DM or players at roleplaying (anything is possible with these wacky numnuts!))

2) Again, this is brilliant! On one hand I would like to handle this in initiative, as the situation might feel hectic even from the PC's point of view, but then again, there's potentially no "combat" aspect in all this, so would it be better if I just used a real timer, say maybe a few minutes (at most, 10 minutes) per scene?

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Okay.

Now I have all the six Greatest Fears and Greatest Joys (for ease of read, see all below). I have some ideas (much obliged to Unoriginal) for most of them, but I could use a bit more ideas.


Greatest Fear: Someone finds out why he was expelled from the crew of the pirate ship "Red Wave". The reason was such a stupid thing that he went to drink captain's all "Tamika Vintage 399" wines.
Greatest Joy: Absolute and total removal of bears from the Rift area, or at least dulling of the claws.

Truth Exposed: The sailor wakes up face-up in a puddle of stale wine, inside the hold of the ship "Red Wave", surrounded by his former captain, crewmates, ...and empty bottles of "Tamika Vintage 399". The rest of the group is present as part of the crew, dressed in the crew's usual attire. The captain appears to be shouting at the sailor while the crew (other than the group members) are laughing and pointing fingers at him (whether this is what actually happened or is irrelevant). For some reason, everything appears to be silent as a grave, except for the sound of the waves hitting at the hull of the ship, and the occasional bottle rolling on the floor while the ship rocks from side to side. However, this sound is almost too loud compared to the silence otherwise

There's a small cabinet with a grating preventing access to the contents behind, but the padlock has a key in it. There seems to be a full bottle of sealed genuine Sujamma, dating back to early 2nd era.

(The key to the puzzle is that the cleric opens the bottle of Sujamma, and takes a sip, at which point, before they can taste the wine, the dream shifts to another.



Greatest Fear: Insomnia. No dreams, no visions from Azura
Greatest Joy: To drink genuine Sujamma (an alcoholic beverage with such high tariffs that it's practically unavailable anywhere outside Morrowind)

Nightmare as suggested above by Unoriginal: two-layer nightmare. Key to the puzzle needed! (maybe there's a silver jeweled necklace around a statue of Azura's neck, connecting this nightmare to that of the Khajiit's Greatest Joy?)



Greatest Fear: Dwemer Constructs. Ever since she was little, she's been told horror stories about big mechanical creatures that hiss, steam and make horrible noises. She has never encountered Dwemer constructs before, so the only limit to how terrible these are is only limited by her imagination.
Greatest Joy: A silver jeweled necklace gifted to her by her lover back home in Elsweyr.

Nightmare Pending for ideas!



Greatest Fear: The farm house earned with his own blood, sweat and tears in the service of the Imperial Army has been burned down and the fields salted.
Greatest Joy: To spend his retirement days on his own farm in peace, growing potatoes, tomatoes, leeks and cabbage (an inside joke: these are ingredients for a Vegetable Soup (https://elderscrolls.fandom.com/wiki/Vegetable_Soup) that boosts shield blocking and power attack abilities in-game).

Nightmare as suggested above by Unoriginal. The key to the puzzle is that the Sorcerer can restore his family name by saving the former Imperial Veteran from being wrongly condemned.



Greatest Fear: Something happens to the family (father, mother, three younger brothers) due to the family's financial crisis.
Greatest Joy: To restore the position of his family of lower nobility to its former or better position. The family has a military background in the Imperial Army.

Nightmare as a combination of the one suggested by Unoriginal and myself. The key to the puzzle needed!



Greatest Fear: He has dark, bloodthirsty thoughts that he has been unable to suppress while living in seclusion or through meditation, and he fears that they will actualize when the entity looking for him finds him.
Greatest Joy: If only everyone would just leave him alone.

Nightmare (bare-bones concept): Another two-layer dream; The druid finds himself feeling weak (with only 1 hit point left) and face-down on the ground, in a puddle of what seems to be their own blood, back against a cavity on a hillside, surrounded by 5 armed figures in a half-circle around him, and a fresh corpse of antoher Cave bear can be seen behind them. The figures appear to be his group members (but are actually just dream constructs), and seem ready to attack the druid next. Cornered, the bloodthirsty thoughts take control and he wild shapes into a Cave Bear as the spirit of the fallen Cave Bear uncontrollably, and attacks the armed figures in self-defense as an act of desperation.

Meanwhile, the tables are turned, and the rest of the group has formed a half-circle around what they believe is their unconscious-but-alive druid companion (who is just a dream construct), laying unconscious in a puddle of his own blood, back against a wall (the exact same location and formation as from the druid's perspective), while the group is threatened by a hungry bear from the other side, and they are defending their friend as the bear attacks.

Both the PC's and the dream constructs take damage as normal, but they cannot be healed by magical means (something in the dream prevents the use of leveled spells and other effects equivalent to spells). The dream ends as soon as the Bear construct is dead (the Greatest Joy of the Barbarian). If the druid falls to 0 hit points before the Bear construct is defeated, they fall unconscious but are stable, until the Bear construct is dead. If the druid defeats the armed figures before the rest of the group has defeated the Bear construct, the druid awakens in his normal form (in full health), and is free to join the encounter against the Bear construct.

[Outwardly this appears as a PvP encounter, using the PCs' own AC for the dream constructs on respective sides, but the druid and the Bear construct have 65 hit points, and the armed figures share a total of 50 hit points. Whenever the armed figures sustain 10 points of damage, one of them is destroyed, until none remain. The rest of the group track their own hit points as normal. Any damage dealt to the PC's is restored when the dream shifts to another, but any other resources used remain as such, until the "Dreamstride" ends.]

[Unoriginal]

I have an idea for tying it all together, but I need to know two things first:

What is the greatest fear and the greatest joy of the NPC who's on this adventure with the rest?

[Arkhios]

I have an idea for tying it all together, but I need to know two things first:

What is the greatest fear and the greatest joy of the NPC who's on this adventure with the rest?

Your guess is probably as good as mine, because this whole Greatest Fear/Joy concept is my own addition.

This is the NPC tagging along: https://elderscrolls.fandom.com/wiki/Erandur

Judging from the description and the quest in-game, I feel that his Greatest Fear could be to fall asleep because of the Miasma, not knowing whether he will wake up ever again, which appears to be the reason why he fled in the first place.

As to what comes to what could be his Greatest Joy, I suppose nothing would bring him more joy than to know he would be forgiven for what he did: Ran away and left his former brothers-and-sisters-in-faith to their fate.

[Unoriginal]

Your guess is probably as good as mine, because this whole Greatest Fear/Joy concept is my own addition.

This is the NPC tagging along: https://elderscrolls.fandom.com/wiki/Erandur

Judging from the description and the quest in-game, I feel that his Greatest Fear could be to fall asleep because of the Miasma, not knowing whether he will wake up ever again, which appears to be the reason why he fled in the first place.

As to what comes to what could be his Greatest Joy, I suppose nothing would bring him more joy than to know he would be forgiven for what he did: Ran away and left his former brothers-and-sisters-in-faith to their fate.

Well, I had written a big post about how I would connect all the nightmares, but apparently it got eaten by internet demons. I'll re-write it when I'm back home.

[Arkhios]

Well, I had written a big post about how I would connect all the nightmares, but apparently it got eaten by internet demons. I'll re-write it when I'm back home.

Darn, where are the Vigilants of Stendarr when you need them!

[Arkhios]

I'm finalizing the small encounters and here's one I'd like to hear some opinions. (Sorry, wrote it in finnish and used Google translate so there might be some weird linguistics going on that I didn't notice yet)

Nils' nightmare
Nils appears in the dark, like under a starless sky; only a dim circular light source far up in the heights provides some light. Nils finds himself clutching with all his strength the open wooden box, which is floating in dark red waves. Everywhere is dead silent, except for the lapping of the waves, and humming, as if Nils' ears are blocked and someone is talking, but he can't make out what they're saying.

Inside the open box are straws with several empty black glass bottles on top. The side of the box has Tamika Vinyard's stamp and the marking 2E399.

Suddenly, the dim light source that was directly above Nils swings unnaturally fast, down at the level of the horizon. The waves first swing Nils away from the light source, but soon after this the current intensifies and Nils flows towards the light source. As the pace picks up, Nils feels that the horizon is narrowing towards the light source. When Nils is only ten meters from the opening, Nils notices that the light source is in fact a round opening, from which the rippling liquid drops like a waterfall, Nils with it down into the void...

Almost immediately, Nils hits his back on the hard floor, and after a few red droplets, a black glass bottle drops directly on his face, hitting his nose painfully. Nils is surrounded by a familiar sight: The members of his group dressed in pirate gear and a red-haired woman who shakes her fist at Nils and shouts with her face red, but her voice cannot be heard at all. (Insight roll DC 5 for Nils: The woman is the captain of Nils' former ship and the bottle that just fell on his face was Tamika Vinyard's wine bottle; the captain's Tamika Vintage 399 wine bottle). On the floor next to Nils is an open wooden box on its side with similar black bottles inside ... all empty.
Nils is paralyzed by horror and shame, while the Captain starts punching and kicking Nils mercilessly, and Nils can do nothing but take the blows.

(Initiative begins: Every turn Nils rolls a Constitution Saving Throw or takes 5 points of damage. Other player characters can try to stop the Captain from beating Nils (using grapple or unarmed strikes, but no weapons or spells). Khutef can make a DC 10 Perception roll every turn, to notice that on the table next to him as an open bottle of authentic Sujamma.)

The captain has 50 HP, Strength 18 (athletics +6) and AC 14.

[Riftwolf]

Well, damn... First player threw quite a curve-ball. Their PC's (Cleric of Azura) worst nightmare is insomnia. No sleep, no visions from Azura. Their biggest joy, however, is to drink genuine sujamma.

How the heck can I make an interesting scene from this nightmare! :smallbiggrin:

At least the joy is easy to implement into just about any dream.

The real thing their nightmare would be isn't insomnia, but their Goddess not giving them visions. Or Vaermina posing as Azura showing them false prophecies to mess with their faith (there's a vision that shows something very specific the priest has to do... And it doesn't work. Other visions, however, come true. It's leading the priest towards the final part of the quest, where Vaermina tells you Erandur would take the Skull. The priest had a vision of Erandur taking the skull and being the end boss of the dungeon, right at the start of the campaign, so it's not clear if that was from Azura or Vaermina.