Which Plot To Use (Warning: Long)

[Mr._Blinky]

NOTE: This is extremely long and complicated. I'm working on a way to condense the bloody thing, but it's difficult. If anyone is actually willing to read this, I'd appreciate it, since I put a fair amount of effort into this.

Okay, so for a little while now I've been running a 1 PC PbP game over on RPOL for one of my friends. It's been going a few months now, and everything is going smoothly. I've got a plot I'm very satisfied with, a good world, a cooperative player, etc.

The problem is I've come to a bit of a crossroads plot-wise. I've got two similar ideas I've been kicking around for a while now, but I can't decide which to use. The main issue is that they're mutually exclusive. I've gotten to the point where I can't really put off the decision any longer. So I've come to you fine people on the GitP boards for help deciding where I should take my plot. First though, I'm going to need to give some background, which might be a bit lengthy, so I'll thank anyone in advance who takes the time to read this bloody thing.

The PC is the Second Prince of a large human kingdom in a custom fantasy realm. The kingdom was founded by his ancestor 300 years earlier, who came out of the North with a vast army and conquered the previous kingdom. Little history survives of the period, as it was a time of tremendous upheaval, and much information was lost or destroyed.

On his 19th birthday, the PC is taken out on his Hunt, which is a coming of age ritual where a young man or woman (it's a gender equal society) hunts a creature based on their social class, kills it, and brings it back for a feast in their honor. As royalty, his task was to slay a manticore.

Quick note about deities in this setting: It is far closer to Greek myth and various spirit religions than most D&D. There are no "God of X"s in the setting. Instead, gods are powerful immortal beings who number in the thousands. They can range from vastly powerful beings that can lay waste to whole armies, to small woodland spirits that are the tenders of a particular pond or tree. They are organized (in order of average power) into Tanar (things that are beastlike, especially things that in D&D are Magical Beasts, and also including Dire animals, called Ancients), Fey, Artlan (most common form of mortals-turned-deity, basically superpowered immortals like Heracles), Daemons (basically anything that would count as an outsider in standard D&D), and Dragons.

So anyways, the PC is given the aid of an Ancient wolf (a kind of Tanar) as a Familiar, and is told that the wolf served his ancient conquering ancestor in the same capacity 300 years earlier. They then set off on his Hunt, along with his father the King, his older brother the First Prince, and a few guards. They successfully attack and kill a manticore, and are about to head home, when their party is attacked by a wyvern. The dragon kills all the guards, and then strikes the King a blow that looks mortal. Both Princes continue to attack it, when the wyvern grabs the PC's horse, with him still in the saddle, and carries him off.

He kills the wyvern in mid-flight, and is about to fall to his death when the Ancient wolf jumps out from nowhere and saves him. He's knocked out, wakes up, finds out the dragon isn't dead do to godly toughness, and leave to find home before it can heal and attack. They spend the night wandering in the snow, with the Prince slowly dying, when the wolf finally lead him to a cave, one it clearly knew about. Inside, he finds a ghostly figure wearing black armor. It attacks, the PC barely wins, and energy bursts out of the figure. The PC falls unconscious, and experiences vivid hallucinations of various places in the wilds. He awakens fully healed, naked, and hungry, and feeling somehow more powerful, knowing he must travel North, feeling somehow it will help him gain greater power.

So he leaves the cave, and the wyvern attacks again. This time, the PC suddenly transforms into powerful Daemon with much of his equipment include swords somehow integrated into his new form. He kills the wyvern, and with a sudden urge, eats its heart. He then discovers that this has granted him further power. He then goes off back to his castle, to find out what has happened.[/summary]

Thats as far as we've gotten, and yeah, I know it's a lot to read. But here's what's been happening: his ancient ancestor was given godhood by another deity to the North, out of a pact. In the cave the wolf lead him to, he fought the tortured soul of that ancestor, and killing it gained him some of its power. However, to fully achieve his potential, he must kill and consume the power of deities, such as the wyvern. The wyvern also killed the King, making the PCs brother (who he has a hostile relationship with), the new King.

The way North is the Crimson Path, which he must follow on his way to full godhood. The visions showed the locations of a group of deities he must defeat before he is ready to achieve full divinity. Killing each will give him a new power (such as killing a massive kraken, giving him an extra set of arms). Once he arrives North, he'll be quite powerful, and will be offered the same deal as his ancestor, and two previous ancestors before that, recurring every 300 years. In return, he'll be granted full divinity, and an army with which to conquer his home kingdom and more from his brother, the new King.

It’s the nature of the deal that I’m having trouble with. These are the two options I’ve been bouncing around:

The deity up North has been imprisoned, and can only escape through a mortal vessel as a carrier. In return for a single year’s possession of the PCs body, he’ll be granted the divinity and the army, who carry powerful new weapons such as primitive muskets and cannon with which to conquer to kingdom.

The other option is that it is in fact a group of gods offering the deal. Rather than them designing the new weapons, it is the PCs nation and their allies, especially the PC’s brother. These gods have discovered that these primitive firearms actually possess the power to permanently injure them, something most mortal weapons cannot. This is apparently not a new thing, and occurs roughly every 300 years, once society has advanced enough from the dark ages of the previous war. And so every 300 years, these gods give one person an army, the powers of a god, and aid, in return for destroying the kingdom in order to prevent the development of weapons they fear can overthrow them. I also like this idea, since it allows for the PC to have a better Face-Heel-Turn + Sacrifice at the end, should he choose to turn on his new masters.

I’m still working around a lot of the details to get rid of anything that’s illogical, but those are the two basic ideas. Right now, I really like both, but can't decide which to use. I'd appreciate anyones input on which they think is better, as well as any other advice.

[Azerian Kelimon]

So...bottom line, the PC is going to be royally screwed whatever you choose?

Make a third option. Preferably a mix with some way for the PC to kick the crap out of the lousy gods.

[Mr._Blinky]

So...bottom line, the PC is going to be royally screwed whatever you choose?

Make a third option. Preferably a mix with some way for the PC to kick the crap out of the lousy gods.

Which is essentially the second option, if that's what he chooses to do.

And no, he's not royally screwed. The character is greedy and selfish, though not exactly evil, and this would be perfectly in line with his character. It's the kind of situation where he's a tool, and he knows it, but once he's agreed to the pact then he has completely free will, and ridiculous amounts of power. He also gets to conquer the kingdom, and likely end up as a horrendously powerful God Emperor or something.

Outside of these bare outlines of what is supposed to happen, he's got complete choice. Especially once he finds out that if he's killed his power is stripped from his soul. It'll then be his decision as to whether he decides to try and wheedle his way back out of the bargain, or ends up deciding in the end that he wants no part of what's going on and decides to fight the being that gave him power. The army from the North, which is by the way led in large part by minor Daemons, will attack with or without him, so he'll also have the option once he finds out what's going on of just outright refusing and trying to stop the invasion.

I'm still working out the details, but as is, he'll have plenty of options. I'm more of thinking along the lines of whether it'd be better for the invading army to use firearms, or whether it is plot-wise more interesting if the gods up North are afraid of those weapons being used by humans to destroy them.

[Azerian Kelimon]

Then, yeah, the second option is best.

Personally, I'm of the opinion that, if the invading army is the one with daemons, the gods would, if smart, store the firearms deep in the bowels of the earth, or simply destroy them, because no intelligent person is going to allow you himself to be hoist by his own petard. Maybe they DO keep something like schematics so as to notice when the humans are trying again?

[CASTLEMIKE]

If the imprisoned God is good what about possession as a "Celestial Rider" if the PC is within one step of the God?

Basically treat the PC as the divine power "Possess Mortal" with the God as a rider who can turn off the benefits of the possession: Access to skills and knowledge, whatever powers the possess grants the PC (perhaps something like the Saint template, or Phrenic or Half Celestial). The reason the God is willing to be a "Rider" is while still imprisoned the God also able to manifest an Aspect (MHB) or an Avatar.

http://www.d20srd.org/srd/divine/divineAbilitiesFeats.htm#possessMortal

Possess Mortal
Prerequisites
Cha 29.

Benefit
The deity can possess any mortal in any location the deity can sense. Unwilling mortals can attempt Will saves (DC 10 + the deity’s Charisma modifier + the deity’s rank).

Notes
Spells that prevent possession block this ability if the mortal is unwilling. Likewise, spells that end possession drive out the deity if the mortal is unwilling. If the mortal is willing, however, the deity cannot be blocked or driven out, except by a divine shield or the use of the Alter Reality salient divine ability by a deity of higher rank.

The possessed mortal effectively becomes an avatar of the deity. The deity can draw on all the possessed mortal’s memories, and the deity senses what the mortal senses. Each mortal possessed counts as a remote location where the deity is sensing and communicating. A demigod can possess up to two mortals at a time, a lesser deity can possess up to five mortals at once, an intermediate deity can possess up to ten, and a greater deity can possess up to twenty mortals at once.

While the deity is in possession, the mortal’s abilities are unchanged, except as noted below.

Type
Same as the deity.

Hit Points
Same as the mortal, +1 for each rank of the deity.

Armor Class
The mortal gains a divine bonus to Armor Class equal to half the deity’s divine rank.

Ability Scores
Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution are unchanged. Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma become 5 points lower than the deity’s (or remain as the mortal’s scores if they are higher).

Saves
Fortitude and Reflex same as the mortal; Will adjusted if necessary for the mortal’s new Wisdom score.

Skills
The mortal can use its own skills and the deity’s skills. If the mortal and the deity have the same skill, use the skill of whichever has more ranks in the skill. Use the mortal’s effective ability scores to determine skill modifiers.

Suggested Portfolio Elements
Supreme.

[Prometheus]

Out of the two, the second option is definitely preferable. It's a lot more sophisticated, brings back this idea of history and the nature of gods, and finally has a vague connotation that the failure of this cycle could yield something like our own world, for better or for worse. Here's my own ideas for variations on this theme

The Matrix Reloaded: The protagonist has just enough power to be given a choice, but just little enough power to be given an unfair one. He can either conform to the whim of the deities, as his ancestors did, and repeat the cycle of history and a great cost. Alternatively he could fight the system, believing he is the one to break the cycle, but in doing so he risks everything he values dear. Your second Prince would be endangering the world to oppose the Gods and throw the world into turmoil, but if he can succeed, he can bring peace to the land and end the tyranny of the divine and technological alike.

American Gods: With the rise of technology, the old gods are falling by the wayside. In it's place, there is the "new gods", the forces of urbanization, corporation, and technological power. It seems like the conflict is inevitable, but the only true answer is to take the third path, seeking to unite the both in harmony, while risking the wrath of both. (Also a theme in many Hayao Miyazaki films)

No matter what you do, the player should feel like he is conforming with his destiny but also exercising his free will.

[Mr._Blinky]

Personally, I'm of the opinion that, if the invading army is the one with daemons, the gods would, if smart, store the firearms deep in the bowels of the earth, or simply destroy them, because no intelligent person is going to allow you himself to be hoist by his own petard. Maybe they DO keep something like schematics so as to notice when the humans are trying again?

Well, if you're talking about the first option, in which the invaders have the firearms, then I'd be removing the weakness gods have to them. That idea is only for the second option, since it's the whole reason for the invasion.

I'm also planning on having something like a secret cult of technology that has kept little bits of inventions passed down through the eras, merely taking time to once again introduce their ideas.

@CASTLEMIKE: Either plan, the deity(s) in question is(are) certainly not Good. So unfortunately I think the whole "Celestial Rider" thing might be a little hard to use.

[Kol Korran]

first of all, i must say i like what you're doing. it sounds like you and the player are creating one of the old world myths or legends, a powerfull willfull individual who battles creation, and is manipulated by it, gaining power through victories and bloody rituals, and getting offfered a deal which speaks directly to his/her one fault- the self conviction of entitlement for power.
reminds me quite a bit of Beowolf (in it's many different versions).

as to your ideas, i too like the second option better, but i'd suggest the gods (and i think it is best if they are plural- a mass of whispering voices, echong each other, some commenting, some arguing. each time a different voice/ aspect speak to the character) don't tell the player the reason for their gifts, just demanding he'll destroy all the "metal rods of fiery death" (or whatever you wish to call muskets). if the player agree, the gods place an irremovable symbole of pain (some sort of an aching tattoo on the player's skin? perhaps his/her ancestors also had it? the common people associate it with godhood?) that ignites and tortures the player if s/he tries to avoid his/ her promise.

as the player start conquering, one of the cultists you mentioned finally reveals the weapons true intent (perhaps he is captured, tortured, and so on) and reveals some of the history of this all as well. this way the revelation of the true nature of the bargain becomes clear only when allready complying with it. (a staple feature in most myths dealing with infernal deals).

one more thought, stemming from this genre- if possible, try to orchestrate events so that while conquering, the player must make some great sacrifice/ endure a great loss, all stemming from the choice- perhaps spomeone s/he is in love with has secretly been one of the cults weapon designers? or perhaps the loved one is either a soldier or a commander at a muskets unit? maybe the father was raised from the dead (as an act of pity only, the nation's edicts and culture prohibing any resurrected from ruling positions), and is know leading his/her brother's army aginst the player, wanting to end this abomination?
(could be a nice little scene, with the father yelling things such "my son/daughter would never become this monstrosity! i shall slay you for taking my lost child's image!" or he could sigh and weep as he raises his musket "i intended to tell you of the danger to the north after the Hunt.. my historians discovered the truth, but i thought we had time. it is my fault my son/daughter that you have become so. i can not be forgiven, but maybe i can correct this mistake. forgive me my child, but i must slay you...")
the basic idea is to have the PC realise the bargain carries a far heavier payment than he originally anticipated, but have him/her make the choice nontheless (again, conforming to the genre).

back to the topic though- second choice, all the way. much more interesting.

[Mr._Blinky]

Good ideas everyone, thanks for the input. I've decided I'll go with choice two.

@Kol Korran: Yeah, a lot of those were pretty close to the ideas I had myself.:smallsmile: Especially the choir of voices type thing, since as of right now his sole communication with his purpose is a wind that whispers things in his ears.

Unfortunately, fun as the resurrection thing might be, it doesn't work with the setting. Magic is extremely limited, so that I have no divine casters and mages are extremely rare. Most people will live their entire lives without seeing any hint of magic. The closest a priest will ever get to divine spellcasting is if his deity grants him a gift of some kind of power. There's no bringing back the dead, so that's wouldn't work.

In case anyone is wondering, the PC is basically going to be invulnerable. He can be "killed", but if he is he'll simply come back revive after a time, due to his being a god and nearly impossible to permanently kill.