Need Awesome Campaign ideas

[oceloknight]

my campaign so far is in a roman kind of era, based in a world with two major civilizations, the Ursuyans and the Esphians, Esphia is a glorious empire that trains its soldiers and guards by combat in a large arena complex, they find people in backstreets and slums and throw them into an arena with bloodthirsty gladiators, those who survive are put into an elite guard, and the other civilization, Ursya, are a magical people who are not unlike Imaskar in the way of technology, a prominent deity named Corsi of the abyss wants to swallow the world into his plane of eternal nothingness, where anything entering is instantly destroyed, and the chosen few including followers, people who are good and people who help tear a hole in Pandora (the plain between material and the abyss) will be let into eternal paradise with Corsi. Corsi is a good deity and at some point the player characters will be given a choice between Corsi and the BBEG Rakshasa caster who plans to harness the power of abyss to control the material plane, banishing those who get in his way, using a tablet that the players acquire then loose early on in the adventure.

i think this is missing something, this is only a summary of what is going to happen but i need help with some of the ideas.
thanks for any help in advance.

[vampire2948]

Where're you intending to have the players begin? In which society? Or.. will they be from both, meeting in a neutral location?

[oceloknight]

They will be scouted for the arena by guards to start with from the Esphian empire, Corsi is the prominent deity in Esphia, but the end of the world stuff is covered up by other stuff like commandments and stories, its kinda told to commoners like the christian judgment day.

[ImmortalLiam]

How much character freedom is there? It sounds to me like your going to make alot of stuff happen and not let them have much option in where they go...

[oceloknight]

they get sent out on a mission after they win the battle in the arena, at some point during this mission they would get separated from the city by a cave in, they would find an alternate exit. If the characters wanted they could resist at the start and i have prepared some stuff in case they escape, they still have choice in the matter, its not like im going to say "right some guards grab you and drag you off."

by the way this is 3.5 edition just so you know, i noticed your 4th edition character sheets.

[ImmortalLiam]

Yea lol, I kinda figured it was 3.5. Most ppl her like it better. I was just introduced via 4e so I stick with it. At any rate, do you want advice on various mission ideas, how to connect it all together, or what exactly?

[oceloknight]

i have a vague idea on how im connecting it, but i need ideas for more missions and quests, i also want to sew some plot hooks into what i already have.

[DracoDei]

Well, I could PM you some of the skeletons of the previous adventures I have made up and run... one of them requires an organization of wizards and sorcerers who do not believe arcane magic should be used for offensive purposes (including charm/dominate and other non-lethal but unfriendly things).

[Fax Celestis]

Two words: Sigil Prep.

[Morph Bark]

Is there a drill sargeant NPC of any sort? If not, make one. Preferably a few levels above the PCs, to whom they slowly catch up, but up until then the drill sargeant will frequently show up to send them off to places or teach them new stuff or tries to drag them back if they go off course. Secretly though? Even if they go off course but still handle themselves well, he'll be proud of them.

Make a few NPCs like this, which you can always change up fluff-wise so you can use the same stats for two or three otherwise wholly different characters (perhaps with moderate mechanical changes like a different feat, other ability scores, one more level in a wholly different class...).

[ImmortalLiam]

On of my "filler" missions I have planned is going to leave the group shipwrecked on an island. And they have to tell me how they get off. I have a standby idea, if they get stuck for long enough with no ideas, a herd of wyverns will arrive, and they can tame/capture them to escape. A few npcs may survive (depending on how nice I feel) and their will be various types of terrain and an abandoned town with former shops and some supplies. Basically, the ppl fled when something attacked.. Its not there anymore, but if they want to spend time searching for info, the inactive volcano may have a cave which tells the story on its walls. Anyhow, Yea, you could use that if you want. In my game they will have an invitation to a jousting tournament, but they have to sail across the sea to get there.

[oceloknight]

i like the shipwrecked idea, thanks for that, i will also try and make a few new npcs maybe as hooks for future quests or missions as well.

i will probably make it more of a cave in becuase this is kinda midlands surrounded by mountains, a cave in while going through the mountains on the way to a job/tournament/dungeon sounds good, and i like the ancient threat kind of idea so I'll make it in an abandoned dwarf/gnome fortress in the underdark.

[ImmortalLiam]

Lol, sweetness. I might incorporate some of your idea into mine as well